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LArAYLTTE P05T NQWO 



tDtPARTMENT OFNLWYORK 
^^ QPANDACNY0rTHEROU5LIC 





COHPILED BY 

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PA5T COMMANDER AND ADJUTANT 



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Late Major 47th N. Y. Vet. Vols., 2d llrig., I ^ O JTfc I-ate Serirt. Co. D. 47th N. Y. Vet. Vols., 

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War with Spain 

AND THE PHILIPPINES 

Pensions are provided by .Section 12, Act of April 22, 1898, 
for officers and enlisted men of the militkry and naval forces 
in the Spanish war, disabled in service and line of duty; 
and for the widows, children under 16, and dependent 
parents, brothers and sisters under 16. of such as die from 
causes incurred in service and line of duty. 

CLAIMS FOR PRIZE MONEY AND EXTRA PAY UNDER ACT OF 
MARCH 3, 1899, A SPECIALTY 

Consultation Free IS'o Fee Unless Successful 



BUTTS & PHILLIPS 

Solicitors of all Classes of Claims 



Army and Navy War Veterans' Bureau of Information 

1425 NEW YORK AVE. .^ J- WASHINGTON, D. C. 

BRANCH OFFICE: 13 Willoughby St., BROOKLYN, N. Y. 



REFERENCES 

Washington Board of Trade, and Traders' National Bank, Washington, D. C. 

You can always depend upon your claims being given personal 
and immediate attention 



From the National Tribune, Washington, D. C, Thursday, April 22, 1897: 

We adopt a scmewhat unusual course in callin;,' attention to the announcement of Messrs. Butts & Phillips, 
which reappears in another column of this issue. .Not only have they been successful as practitioners, but their 
personal war record gives an additional interest to their career. The fact that they are both veterans naturally 
had a bearing upon the success they have achieved professionally in the special line of practice to which they have 
devoted their efforts. Both members of the firm have had the advantage of long service in responsible positions 
in the Pension Bureau. 

Major Butts organized and managed the Army and Navy Survivors' Division, which has been officially 
described as having enabled over 60,000 claimants to prove their cases before the Bureau who otherwise would have 
failed for lack of evidence. 

.Send for our special blank for record of military or naval service to be left with your 
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AMERICAN FLAG COMPANY 

45-47 Elizabeth St., New York 

MANUFACTURERS OF 

FLAGS ^ BANNERS 



OF EVERY DESCRIPTION 



Specialty : — Highest Quality of U. S. Flags 
and Post Colors, Guidons, Gra've Flags, etc. 
for G. A. R. Posts. 



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RICMEY, BROWNE & DONALD 



Architectural Iron Workers 
Borden and Review Avenues _____ 



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Manhattan Life Huilding . Kimball & Thompson, Architects 
New York Life Uuildin^; . McKiM.MEAO&VVHMii, Architects 
St- Luke's Hospital Ernkst I-'lagg, Architect 



Artistic Memorials 



i 



GRANITE 
and BRONZE 



Refer to Memorials for 

Col. H. O. CLARK, at Milton, Vt. 

Col. W. W. BADGER, in Kensico Cemetery 

Capt. ALEX. M. WETHERILL, in Arlington 
National Cemetery 

Vice-Prest. T. A. HENDRICKS, at Indian- 
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All the latest Concert and Dance Music including a complete 

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installations and receptions jt j* <.* «^ «^ «^ 

REFERENCE— LAFAYETTE POST No. J40 

\ Office 60 Duane Street, New York City 



ADDRESS 



' Residence 



546 Macon Street, Brooklyn 




Iron Work for Buildings 

128 West 33d Street, New York. 



w.,.,. i f28 West 33d Street. 
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JOBBING OF ALL KINDS 
PROMPTLY ATTENDED TO 



LAFAYETTE POST, No. 140 
DEPARTMENT OF NEW YORK 
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 




"TO THE COLORS. 



LAFAYETTE POST, No. 140 
DEPARTMENT OF NEW YORK 
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 




COMPILED BY 

WILBUR F. BROWN 

PAST COMMANDER AND ADJUTANT 



VOLUME ONE 




NEW YORK 

Published by the Compiler 

1900 

L. 



./ 



39707 



Libi^py of Qonqresa 

Two Copies PECftvEo 
AUG 28 1900 

Cefyrijht tntry 

SECOND COPY. 

Dftivertri t» 
OROt« DIVISION, 

SEP 1 190U 



Copyright, 1900, by 
WILBUR F. BROWN. 



73984 




To MY BRAVE AND NOBLE COMRADES OF THE POST, THE 
FRATERNAL, CHARITABLE, AND LOYAL COMPANIONS 
OF MY MANHOOD, WHO HAVE PRECEDED ME TO THE CAMP 
OF PEACE, 1 MOST TENDERLY DEDICATE THESE VOLUMES 
AND INSCRIBE WITH THE RECORDS OF ALL, MY SIMPLE 
TESTIMONY OF THEIR HEROIC DEEDS AND FAITHFUL SERVICE. 



f 



Introduction 

To write the history of Lafayette Post is to write the his- 
tory of the Grand Army of the RepubHc in all that pertains to 
Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty as the sentiments of its exist- 
ence. 

Every act of the noble Order, since the date of the Post 
charter, has met with the fullest sympathy, and every purpose 
of the parent has been accepted as a precept to the child. 

In attempting to write the biography of the Post, the author 
recognizes his incapability and acknowledges it ; but, as from 
the beginning until now so much has been said and done which 
must bring forth that which will be of the same benefit to those 
of the future as it has been to those of the past and present, 
there is an excuse, surely, for the desire to preserve the records, 
imperfectly as they may be arranged, for an easy reference for 
those who will cherish the memory of their patriotic ancestors 
and loyal predecessors. 

It is not only to record the military service of the Comrades 
of the Post, or to tell of the labor done by its members to fulfil 
the mission of the Order, that these pages are prepared — it is 
also to enlarge the benefit of the lessons taught within the En- 
campments by those from other places who have been its guests ; 
not only to open to the world at large the minutes of the Post, 
that all may become familiar with the purposes of the Grand 
Army, but to refresh the memory with the recital of good deeds 
and fraternal greeting. 

The numerical strength of the Post (averaging six hundred 
for the past few years) has forbidden a close companionship with 
every one, and the extended territory covered by the member- 
ship has prevented intimate intercourse between them all. Much 



Introduction 

has been performed by some that has not been conveyed to the 
remote residences of others, and more has been said and writ- 
ten by those who have met the distant ones which has not been 
pLibHshed to those at home. 

There was no arm of the service, during the war which cre- 
ated the parent organization, that is not represented in the 
Post membership, and no rank in either service was so high 
but it may be found in the Roster. The Private and the Cabin- 
boy have fraternized with the General and the Admiral, and 
altogether there has been a fraternal meeting on the common 
platform of loyal service in their country's cause. 

It is not to eulogize that these volumes are written, because 
the truthful records will be sufficient praise. Nor is it to boast 
that these words have been gathered ; for the simple history of 
bravery and sacrifice needs no display. Just a simple story of 
soldier-life and reminiscence of camp and deck is all that was 
contemplated, with a compilation of a later enlistment in the 
country's service, just as loyal and needful after the declaration 
of peace as was the strife during the period of war. 

Within the Post are Comrades who were conspicuous in 
battle, now wearing Medals of Honor ; some who still suffer 
from wounds never exposed ; others who have led a forlorn 
hope, and remain silent ; and from every phase of danger have 
Comrades come who now shrink from public mention. Every 
walk in life is represented ; every shade of religious belief and 
political creed ; every sort of disposition and grade of fortune. 
The bronze button has been worn in the presence of every ruler 
on the earth, and even into darkest Africa has the story of the 
Grand Army been carried by those who have sat quietly at times 
around the Post Campfire. There have been deeds of charity 
not yet told ; lessons of sympathy by example, hardly noticed ; 
and public service known only by result. A happy family, 
sitting in the twilight of life, awaiting the night ! 

The Campfires have been joyful, the ancedotes cheerful, 
the songs helpful. The debate, the lecture, the ritual, and the 
final farewell have all been parts of the system the Post set out 
to maintain, and in these chapters is the simple record of it all. 



Introduction 

These volumes are sent forth, then, to link the past to the 
present and to enlighten the future. When the infirmities of 
age shall preclude a visit to the Post, Comrades may open the 
books at their home firesides and find some items to recall to mind 
forgotten incidents the remembrance of which will make light the 
darkness gathering about them ; or, turning to the Roster, they 
may, when life's warfare has nearly closed, like the battle-scarred 
sergeant after every conflict, call the roll ; and though they will 
find many among the missing, the wounded, and the dead, in 
memory every Comrade will be " present or accounted for," and 
there will come to them through the crevices of the chamber 
casement the echo of kind words they had often heard, and 
they will feel again the warm pressure of their Comrades' grasp. 

WILBUR F. BROWN. 



r 



LAFAYETTE POST, No. 140 
DEPARTMENT OF NEW YORK 
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 



Societies of War Veterans 

It is deemed unnecessary by the compiler of this history to 
make more than a passing reference to the period and service 
which furnished the material for the foundation on which has 
been built the grandest secular order in the histor\' of the world 
— The Grand Army of tJic Republic. 

The present generation is too familiar with the history of 
the Civil War, 1 86 1-65, to require a recapitulation in detail of 
the events ; and the dissemination through public and private 
libraries of all the circumstances has been so thorough that it 
would be superfluous to repeat them in this work, issued, in a 
measure, for the benefit of those who will be actors in the arena 
of life after the participators on the fields of strife shall have 
received their final "muster out." 

There had been four years of terrible war when on April 2, 
1865, Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appo- 
mattox ; and on the 26th of the same month when Joseph E. 
Johnston capitulated to William Tecumseh Sherman, and prac- 
tically closed the contest, which culminated on May loth, when 
Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy, was captured 
in ignominious flight. 

During those four years 2.859,132 men had been enlisted in 
the Northern Army, of whom 359,528 had given up their lives 
to save that of the Nation. The Navy had employed 122,000 
men in an equally important service. ' 

Nothing binds men so closely to each other as to share 
together hardship and danger. There had been much of both. 
The proof of this is found in the record of 224,586 who had died 
of disease, 43,032 of injuries, 67,058 killed in battle, and 24,852 
of mixed causes. Bravery and courage had been sublime, and 
endurance beyond comparison. The Army had fought more 
than two thousand engagements, and the Navy had policed the 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

seas, destroyed privateers, and covered the Army in many im- 
portant contests. 

At the close of the war there were more than a milHon of 
Union men under arms, who must be disbanded and returned to 
their homes to begin a new life or to resume the one which had 
been interrupted by the necessities of the Nation. Many were 
discharged who had been more recently recruited and had not 
yet reached the fields of conflict, and the continuous disbandment 
of veteran troops began at once to relieve the strain of anxiety on 
the field, as well as at the fireside, which had tested the patriot- 
ism of the whole Northern people of both sexes, in the extreme. 

Troops of the armies of the Potomac, of the Tennesee, and 
of Georgia — 150,000 strong — were summoned to the Capital to 
pass in review before receiving their discharge from the service 
of war to resume the avocations of peace. It was a grand page- 
ant — the like had never been seen before — but it was not a 
parade of brilliant uniforms and burnished steel. Neither car- 
ried they the " Spoils of War." The soil of service had settled 
on the blue uniforms, and the bronze of exposure covered the 
faces of heroes who were joyful and sad in turn as the hope of 
family reunion mingled with the memory of departed comrades. 

The review was made by President Andrew Johnson and his 
Cabinet. 

The great Abraham Lincoln was with the dead. 

Corps leaders and commanders of all grades were absent 
from the columns, and the every-day comrades who had " touched 
elbow" in the ranks missed the presence of many with whom they 
had bivouacked on the field. 

When the calls had been made during the four years for 
patriots to meet in dreadful conflict the misguided men of the 
South, there had been an uprising of towns and villages that 
went forth almost C7i masse to share a common danger and to 
combat a courageous foe. Not so the return. The comrades of 
years, who had gone forth from the same village and town, who 
had stood shoulder to shoulder in many a fight and mated to- 
gether in the same tent, or grouped about a common campfire, 
had been thinning the ranks as the days wore away, until the 

4 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

places were filled by others who had been snmmonc^d to close 
the gaps. 

It cannot be a surprise, then, that those who survived had 
formed the closest attachment, that should never be broken — no, 
not even by Death himself, who would be busy in all the days to 
follow, claiming for his own the weakened remnants of th(? bands 
of American youth who had withstood so much. 

With the good-by of separating battalions was the admonition 
of remembrance, and thus the desire for a continued companion- 
ship culminated in the formation of circles and societies bonded 
together in the friendship that had its birth in the travail of war. 

The spontaneity of these societies was remarkable, and they 
sprang into life like the spring blades of grass that are coaxed 
to come forth by the warm sun when the hardship of winter has 
grown into the past. The warmth of comradeship cannot be 
expressed, it is so general and sincere. The ownership of the 
blue diamond, or the red crescent, or the white cross was the 
eligibility which formed the brotherhoods, and they grew in 
numberless proportion until nearly every army, corps, division, 
brigade, regiment, company, or crew was bound together by 
sacred compact, which was not to be broken until the last sur- 
vivor of the land and sea service of those days should be 
" mustered in " on the everlasting plains of peace where war shall 
be unknown. 

Neither did they wait, those Boys of the Blue, until the war 
was finished. Organization began in the midst of service. The 
first was the 

Third Army Corps Union 

This Union was formed March i6, 1862. General Daniel 
E. Sickles was the first President. The object of the association, 
in the main, was to provide funds for embalming and sending 
home for burial the bodies of officers killed in battle or dying 
in hospital at the front. With enlarged purposes it continued 
after the war, and on July 1-3, 1888, it laid the corner stone of 
the Third Corps Monument at Gettysburg. All officers and 

5 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 



THIRD CORPS 






1ST DIV. 2D DIV. 3D DIV. 

enlisted men who participated in the battles of the Corps or be- 
longed to it have ever been eligible to membership in the Union. 
The next orp-anization formed durincr the war was the 

Society of the Army of the Tennessee 

It was organized April 14, 1865. Major- 
General John A. Rawlins was the first 
President ; and two of the members became, 
later on, the first Adjutant-General of the 
Grand Army of the Republic (Lieutenant 
Robert M. Woods) and the Adjutant of 
the first Post of the Grand Army of the 
Republic (Captain George R. Steele). The 
objects of the Society are : " To keep alive 
and preserve that kindly and cordial feeling 
which has been one of the characteristics of 
this army during its career in the service, 
and which has given it such harmony of 
action and contributed in no small degree to 
its glorious achievements in our country's 
cause. The fame and glory of all officers 
belonging to this army who have fallen, 
either on the field of battle or in the line 
of their daily duty, shall be a sacred trust to this Society, which 
shall cause proper memorials of their services to be collected and 
preserved, and thus transmit their names with honor to posterity. 
The families of all such officers who shall be in indigent circum- 
stances will have a claim upon the generosity of the Society, and 
will be relieved by the voluntary contributions of its members 

6 




Department of New York, Ct. A. R. 

whenever brought to their attention. In hke manner the siiffer- 
in^r famihes of those officers who ma)- hereafter Ix; strick(-n by 
death shall be a trust in the hands of the survivors." 

Any member of this Society may designate? by will the relative 
to whom such membership shall descend; andindefaultof such dec- 
laration, the eldest son shall inherit his father's title to enrolment. 

General William Tecumseh Sherman was elected President 
in 1869, and served for many years— if, indeed, not until the day 
of his death. 

This Society has erected in Washington an equestrian statue 
of General Rawlins that cost $50,000, and placed over the grave 
of Major-General James B. McPherson, at Clyde, Ohio, a memo- 
rial costing $23,000, as well as an equestrian statue of General 
McPherson in Washincrton. 



Society of the Army of the Cumberland 

This Society was organized Febru- _^ 
ary 16, 1868, at Cincinnati, and is com- 
posed of officers and enlisted men who 
served in the Army of the Cumberland. 
Its first President was Major-General 
George H. Thomas, and he was suc- 
ceeded by General W. S. Rosecrans, 
followed by General Philip H. Sheridan, 
who retained the position until his 
death. 

The badge is most unique and ex- 
pressive — the Star representing the in- 
signia of the Twentieth Army Corps, 
the Triangle of the P^ourth, and the 
Acorn of the Fourteenth Army Corps. 

In 1879 ^^"'i^ Society erected, at a 
cost of $35,000, on a pedestal provided 
by Congress, an equestrian statue, in 
Washington, in memory of the intrepid leader and first Presi- 
dent, General George H. Thomas ; and in 1887 also raised a 

7 




Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

TWENTIETH CORPS 



♦ 




M 



2D DIV. 

FOURTH CORPS 



3D DIV. 





FOURTEENTH CORPS 




3D DIV. 






1ST DIV. 2D DIV. 31) DIV. 

monument in tribute to General James A. Garfield, the mar- 
tyred President of the United States, who died in 1881. 

The Society of the Army of the Ohio 
The Society of the Army of Georgia 

These societies were of Western origin, 
and were formed in Chicago, December 15, 
1868, at a reunion being held at the time, with 
Generals Grant (then President-elect of the 
United States) and Sherman present. Major- 
General John M. Schofield, afterwards in 
command of the United States Army, was 
chosen President. 
SIGNAL CORPS j^c United States Veteran Signal Corps 

Association was organized at Boston in November, 1867. 




Department of New York, G. A. K. 



The Society of the Army of the James 

was formed in Boston, September 2, 1868, with General Cliarles 
Devens, Jr., President. General Devens afterwards held the 
office of Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the R(tpul)lic 
for two successive terms — ^1873-4. This Society was not of lon^; 
duration. Its recollections of service in the Department of the 
James were so closely identified with those of the Army of the 
Potomac that it became absorbed by the latter and was incor- 
porated with it in 1876 — the centennial year of the Republic. 

The Society of the Burnside Expedition and of 
the Ninth Corps 

The organization of this Society was effected February 8, 
1869, at New York City, and General Ambrose E. Burnside 

NINTH CORPS 




3D DIV. 4TH DIV. 



(Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
1 871) was elected President, who served in that office until his 
death. In 1888 General Gilbert H. McKibben * was elected 
President. 

Society of the Army of the Potomac 

Of all the societies of war veterans, except the Grand Army 
of the Republic and the Loyal Legion, none is so large as the 
Society of the Army of the Potomac. It was organized in New 

* General McKibben was a member of Lafayette Post for six years, from 1884 to 1S90. 
when he was transferred to George Washington Post, No. 103, of New York. 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

York City, July 5, 1869, and is comprised of officers and soldiers 
who served in the Tenth and Eighteenth Army Corps and 
Army of the James. 

The Presidents of this Society — among whom have been 



lOTH CORPS 



I 8th corps 






t^=^ 



n 



pr=^ 










3I) DIV 



Generals Grant, Sheridan, Meade, Hooker, Burnside, McDowell, 
Hancock, Hartranft, Slocum, Sickles — have been remarkably 
notable for their army rank. Brevet Major-General John 
Newton* was elected President at Washington, May i6th. 

The Society of the Army and Navy of the Gulf was 
formed of officers who served in the Department of the Gulf, 
at a meeting held at Long Branch, N. J., July 8, 1869. Admiral 
Farragut was President while he lived. 

* General Newton was a member of Lafayette Post from December, 1892, until his death, 
May I, 1895. 



Dcpartmeiir of New York, G. A. 11. 



The Society of the Army of West Virginia 

This Society came into beini^ in 1869, with General Ruther- 
ford B. Hayes (elected President of the United States in 1877) 
as its first President. 



The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the 
United States 

The Loyal Lection is the largest Veteran Society except the 
Grand Army of the Republic, and is composed of officers honor- 
ably ^//.sr/^^zr^^^^ from the service — the first 
one formed with this characteristic. 

It was the outcome of a meeting of 
a few at Philadelphia, on the day after 
the assassination of President Lincoln, to 
arrange for a meeting of ex-officers of the 
Army and Navy to adopt resolutions per- 
taining to the death of the President. 
The suggestion of a permanent organiza- 
tion was entertained, and the same was 
perfected at Philadelphia, May 3, 1865. 
It is a national organization, with Grand 
(State) Commanderies in different States. 
The Order has two classes — first and 
second — with the oldest sons of members 
of the first class eligible as members of 
the second class. The first class is re- 
stricted to officers of the war. 

The badge is rich in appointment and beautiful in design. 
In addition to the badge, which is generally reserved for state 
occasions, the Order has adopted a button, which is constantly 
worn in the lapel of the coat as a mark of honorable distinc- 
tion. It is recognized everywhere, at home and abroad, and it 
is an open sesame to nearly all gatherings the world over. 




Lafeyette Post, No. 140, 

The Cincinnati Society of ex-Army and Navy Officers was 
organized October 2, 1874. Colonel Stanley Matthews was the 
first President. 

Pennsylvania Reserve Association 

In 1 86 1 Governor Curtin, foreseeing the call to be made for 
troops for a service of three years, organized the " Pennsylvania 
Reserves Corps" with fifteen regiments of Pennsylvanians, and 
they were in active service until the close of the war. The 
Association was formed of men made eligible by service in the 
Corps, and became a permanent organization September 14, 
1866, "to cherish the memories, perpetuate the friendships, and 
continue the associations formed in the field." 

There is a Grand Army Post (No. 191) in Philadelphia 
exclusively composed of members who served in the Reserves 
Corps. 

Veterans of the Navy 

The sailors of the war, too, had formed ties in the service 
that were bred of close companionship on the quarterdeck, in 
the midst of danger. The spirit of association to preserve the 
memories of days of service and trial came upon the brave 
men of the sea with a force equal to their allies of the Army. 
They had shared kindred privations and were as proud of their 
achievements, which assisted in the grand result of peace. 
As an outcome of this kinship there came the Farragut Vet- 
eran Association of Philadelphia ; Connecticut Naval Veteran 
Association ; Farragut Veteran Association of the Port of New^ 
York ; Farragut Veteran Association of the West ; Naval Vet- 
eran Legion of California ; Essex Association of Naval Veter- 
ans, of Essex, Mass.; Naval Veteran Association of the Gulf, 
of New Orleans ; Commodore Foote Naval Veteran Associa- 
tion, St. Louis, Mo.; Kearsarge Association of Naval Veterans, 
of Boston, Mass.; Monitor Association of Naval Veterans, of 
Camden, N. J.; all, and a host of others, like the Army Associa- 



Department of New York, G. A. K. 

tions, acting independently of each other until January 13, 1887, 
when the " National Association of Naval Veterans" was formed 
for more concerted action to accomplish their purposes and 
designs. 

Distinctively Naval Posts of the Grand Army of the Repub- 
lic have been formed as follows : No. 400, Philadelphia ; No. 
516, New York City ; No. 104, Hoboken. 

It is not our purpose to comment on the usefulness of the 
societies mentioned, either Army or Navy, but broader purposes 
than fraternal ones moved the minds of those who conceived 
and brought into being the noblest order the sun has ever shone 
upon, or the mind of man devised. 



The Grand Army of the Republic 



The comradeship of two million and more of men who had 
bivouacked and fought together during the memorable period 
(1861-65) in the life of our great country required special organi- 
zation to perpetuate the memories of 
friendship born in the camps and 
cemented on the fields of battle, and 
the condition of the men who had 
composed the Army of the North 
demanded the concentration of effort 
to ameliorate suffering and obtain 
proper recognition of service given 
at so great a cost to themselves and 
to those dependent upon them for 
support and sympathy. 

The organization of the Order of 
the Grand Army of the Republic 
must be accorded to Dr. Benjamin 
Franklin Stephenson of Springfield, 
111., who organized the first Post at 
Decatur, April 6, 1S66 ; and the con- 
ception of it to the Rev. William 
J. Rutledge, the Chaplain of the 
Fourteenth Illinois Infantry, to whom 
is due much praise for his cooperation with Dr. Stephenson in 
laying the corner stone of this noble association, which has been 
productive of so much good, not only to the members of it, but 
to every soldier and sailor who participated in the momentous 
struggle for the liberty of man, as well as to the Nation in sup- 
port of the government controlling it. 

14 





/3 /' ^/z^3^<^C^^>cx><z^ 



FOUNDER OF THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

The Grand Army of the Republic was conceived amid the 
havoc of war. 

In 1S62, when Dr. Stephenson was Major of the l*"oiirteenth 
IlHnois, he formed a close companionship with Chaplain Rut- 
ledo-e, his tent-mate. And in that close communion, which can- 
not be measured by those who have not met dangers together, 
it was but natural that two natures such as were possessed by 
these brave men should reach out into the future for the con- 
summation of some plan to keep alive the associations formed 
upon the field, and to relieve such distress as they foresaw would 
follow the disbandment of so many bodies of men who would 
reach home without occupation and to a great degree unfitted 
for the civil life to follow when they must cast about for them- 
selves. They knew of the weakened constitutions, of the 
wounded and crippled, and, worse than these, the thousands of 
young men who had left home before responsibility had reached 
them, to be educated to lean upon others for guidance and 
support. 

During Sherman's expedition to Meridian, in February, 1864, 
the suggestion was made by Chaplain Rutledge that there would 
be a natural desire, when the war should close, for those who 
had bivouacked and marched together, sharing hardship and 
confronting danger, to make social alliance for the preservation 
of companionship and to keep alive the memories of a united 
and perilous service. As this forethought widened by consulta- 
tion and deliberation, there came visions of good to be accom- 
plished if the proper direction was taken, and so they planned 
in advance, as best they could, without a definite time in view, 
for a practical crystallization of the many views expressed and 
pondered over. 

The war ended at last in 1865, but it was not until the spring 
of 1S66 when, after much correspondence, the parents of the plan 
met by appointment to form a creed which would be the faith 
of nearly half a million of men. The first conference was held 
in Springfield, III, and the result of it was the Grand Army of 
the Republic. 

It is not positively known now who composed the members 

17 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

of the conference as a whole, but the following were certainly 
present and took their part in the preliminary discussion at the 
formation of the Order : 

Colonel John M. Snyder, 
Dr. James Hamilton, 
Major Robert M. Woods, 
Major Robert Allen, 
Chaplain William J. Rutledge, 
Colonel Martin Flood, 
Colonel Daniel Grass, 
Colonel Edward Prince, 
Captain John S. Phelps, 
Captain John A. Lightfoot, 
Captain B. F. Smith, 
Brevet Major A. A. North, 
Captain Henry E. Howe, 
Lieutenant B. F. Hawkes, 

names which should go down in history to illustrate the 
American principle that "all men are born free and equal" ; for 
the scope of the Order arranged by these commissioned officers 
embraced every soldier and sailor who had served the country 
in the dark days of 1861-65, no matter what his term of enlist- 
ment or the quality of service. Rank had no place in the minds 
of these men ; it was patriotism that counted for eligibility, 
only qualified by a "muster in" and an "honorable discharge" 
from the service in the hour of their country's peril. 

By common consent Dr. Stephenson became the Commander 
of the Department of Illinois, and assumed the duties at once. 
Secrecy was deemed necessary, and each one as he became 
engaged in the preliminary work of the Order was obligated to 
keep sacred and secret the operations in motion. A Ritual was 
prepared, formed in part from that of the Soldiers' and Sailors' 
League of St. Louis, and taken to Decatur to be printed in the 
office of the " Tribune," under the direction of the proprietors 
and two employers, all of whom had been in the military ser- 
vice, after taking an obligation of secrecy. 

There was an Order in Missouri, which had started in 1865, 
called the " Advance Guard of America," or " The Grand Army 

18 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

of Progress," and these, says one author, ='' probabl)- siio-o-csted 
the title of " The Grand Army of the RepubHc." 

The purposes of the Order were clearly defined and have 
been fully set forth in the Constitution of the Organization, as 
follows : 

1. To preserve and strengthen those kind and fraternal feelings which bind 
together the soldiers, sailors, and marines who united to suppress the late Rebellion, 
and to perpetuate the memory and history of the dead. 

2. To assist such former Comrades-in-arms as need help and protection, and to 
extend needful aid to the widows and orphans of those who have fallen. 

3. To maintain true allegiance to the United States of America, based upon 
a paramount respect for, and fidelity to, its Constitution and Laws ; to discounte- 
nance whatever tends to weaken loyalty, incites to insurrection, treason, or rebellion, 
or in any manner impairs the efficiency and permanency of .our free institutions ; 
and to encourage the spread of universal liberty, equal rights, and justice to all 
men. 

The persons eligible to membership are : 

Soldiers and sailors of the United States Army, Navy, or Marine Corps, who 
served between April 12, 1S61, and April 9, 1865, in the war for the suppression of 
the Rebellion, and those having been honorably discharged therefrom after such 
service, and of such State regiments as were called into active service and subject 
to the orders of United States general officers between the dates mentioned. 

No person is eligible who has at any time borne arms against 
the United States. 

The First Post 

On the sixth day of April, 1866, the first Post of the Grand 
Army of the Republic was organized at Decatur, 111., under the 
following charter : 



Gr,4nd Ariviy of the Republic, 
Departmext of Illinois. 

To all 7C'hoi/t it may concern, grcefing : 

Know ye, that the Commander of the Department of 
Illinois, reposing special trust and confidence in the patriotism 
and fidelity of M. F. Kanan, G. R. Steele, Geo. H. Dunning, 
I. C. Pugh, J. H. Nale, J. T. Bishop, C. Reibsame, J. W. Routh, B. F. Sibley, 
I. N. Coltrin, Joseph Prior, and A. Toland, does, by the authority in him vested, 
* General Robert B. P.eath. 
19 




Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

empower and constitute them charter members of an Encampment of the Grand 
Army of the RepubHc, to be known as Post i, of Decatur, District of Macon, 
Department of lUinois ; and they are hereby constituted as said Post, and author- 
ized to make by-laws for the government of said Post, and to do and perform all 
acts necessary to conduct and carry on said Organization in accordance with the 
Constitution of the Grand Army of the Republic. 

Done at Springfield, Illinois, this sixth day of April, 1866. 

B. F, Stephenson, 

Comma7ider of Deparfment 

Robert M. Woods, Adjutant-General. 

The minutes of the first meeting are as follows : 

At an informal meeting, held April 6, 1866, for the purpose of organizing an 
Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic, the following-named persons were 
mustered by Major Stephenson, and constituted Charter Members : I. C. Pugh, 
George R. Steele, J. W. Routh, Joseph Prior, J. H. Nale, J. T. Bishop, G. H. Dun- 
ning, B. F. Sibley, M. F. Kanan, C. Reibsame, I. N. Coltrin, Aquilla Toland ; when, 
upon motion, the Encampment entered into an election of officers with the fol- 
lowing result : 

Officers of the District — Brigadier-General I. C. Pugh, Commandant of the Dis- 
trict ; Lieutenant-Colonel J. H. Nale, District Quartermaster; Dr. J. W. Routh, 
Adjutant. 

Officers of the Post — M. F. Kanan, Post Commander; G. R. Steele, Post 
Adjutant; G. H. Dunning, Post Quartermaster; C. Reibsame, Officer of the Day; 
J. T. Bishop, Officer of the Guard ; J. W. Routh, Post Surgeon ; all of whom were 
duly mustered by Major Stephenson, who then declared the Encampment duly 
organized and ready for the transaction of any and all business which might come 
before it, and assigned to it the 

POST OF HONOR 
as 

Decatur Encainipment, No. i. 

On motion, a committee of two was appointed to procure a suitable room for 
the Encampment and report at the next regular meeting. Captains Kanan and 
Dunning, Committee. 

On motion, Tuesday was decided upon as the night for regular meetings. 

On motion, adjourned to meet April 10, 1866. 

[Signed] M. F. Kan.an, P. C. 

G. R. Steele, P. A. 

The first recruits after the organization of the Post were 
N. G. Burns, Henry Gorman, N. E. Winholtz, W. H. Andrews, 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

and W. H. B. Rowe, who were mustered in due form at the 
meeting of April loth. 

It may be well at this point to give a syno[)sis of the rank 
of the Comrades of Post i, to show the absolute disregard of 
titles or length of service of those chosen to be the first mem- 
bers of the Order. 

Kanan, M. F. Enlisted as First Lieutenant, Co. A, Forty- 
first Illinois Infantry; discharged as Captain ; term of service, 
3 years, 4 months. 

Steele, George R. Enlisted as Second Lieutenant, Co. A, 
Forty-first Illinois Infantry ; discharged as Captain ; term of 
service, 4 years, 4 months. 

Dunning, G. H.* Enlisted as Captain, Co. A, Twenty-first 
Illinois Infantry ; discharged as Captain ; term of service, i year, 
5 months, 

Pugh, Isaac C* Enlisted as Captain, Co. A, Eighth Illinois 
Infantry; discharged as Brevet Brigadier-General; term of 
service, 3 years, 1 1 months. 

Nale, John H.* Enlisted as Captain, Co. A, Forty-first 
Illinois Infantry; discharged Lieutenant-Colonel; term of 
service, 3 years, i month. 

Bishop, J. T. Enlisted as First Lieutenant, Co. I, ii6th 
Illinois Infantry; discharged as Captain; term of service, i 
year, 6 months. 

Reibsame, Christian. Enlisted as Private, Co. B, ii6th 
Illinois Infantry; discharged as Captain; term of service, 2 
years, 10 months. 

Routh, J. W.* Enlisted as Corporal, Co. A, Forty-first 
Illinois Infantry; discharged as Hospital Steward ; term of ser- 
vice, 3 years, i month. 

Sibley, B. F. Enlisted as Surgeon, Twenty-first Illinois In- 
fantry ; discharged as Surgeon ; term of service, about i year. 

Coltrin, Isaac N. Enlisted Co. E, Sixty-sixth Illinois In- 
fantry ; term of service, 3 months. 

Prior, Joseph M. Enlisted as First Sergeant, Co. E, Sixty- 
eighth Illinois Infantry ; term of service, four months. 

* Dead. 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

Toland, Aquilla.* Enlisted as Private, Co. E, Seventeenth 
Ohio ; discharged as First Lieutenant. 

Of the twelve original members of Post No. i, six are 
known to have died. 

The Ritual of the Grand Army of the Republic was originally 
very verbose (the Post Commander's charge having about two 
thousand words) ; but it was soon revised by a freedom of 
erasures, cutting down the charge nearly one-half. 

^-, Plan of Organization 

The plan of organization was very elaborate in the begin- 
ning, and provided for many auxiliaries which have since been 
dispensed with, to wit : 

Pj^ecinct ; to be known as Post No. — (name of city, town, 
township, ward, or precinct). The officers were Commander, 
Adjutant, Quartermaster, an " Officer of the Day and such other 
officers as should be necessary for the transaction of business, 
to be detailed by the commanding officer." 

Comity ; to be known as District of (name of county), with 
a District Commander, an Assistant Adjutant-General, and a 
District Quartermaster. 

State ; to be known as Department of (name of State), with 
a Department Commander, Adjutant-General, Assistant Adju- 
tant-General, and Quartermaster-General. 

National; to be known as "The Grand Army of the Re- 
public," with a Commanding Officer, Adjutant-General, and 
Quartermaster-General. 

Posts were to have no direct representation in the Depart- 
ment Assembly. The District Organization was to consist of 
one Delegate for every ten members of the Order within the 
county, and was to have the supervision of Posts and the creat- 
ing of them. The Department Organization, which was to meet 
once a year, was to be composed of one Delegate from each 
county or district. The National Organization was to be com- 
posed of two Delegates from each Department. 

* Dead. 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

In July, 1866, at the Convention held in Springfield, 111., 
the Constitution was amended and additional offices were pro- 
vided. In the National Organization, an Assistant Commanding 
Officer, Surgeon-General, and Chaplain were added. In De- 
partments, an Assistant Department Commander, Surgeon- 
General, and Chaplain. In Posts, an Assistant Post Com- 
mander, Post Surgeon, Post Chaplain, Officer of the Day, and 
Officer of the Guard. 

The Constitution as amended contained the following 

Declaration of Principles 

Section I. The soldiers of the Volunteer Army of the United States during the 
Rebellion of 1S61-5, actuated by the impulses and convictions of patriotism and of 
eternal right, and combined in the strong bands of fellowship and unity by the toils, 
the dangers, and the victories of a long and vigorously waged war, feel themselves 
called upon to declare, in definite form of words and in determined cooperative 
action, those principles and rules which should guide the earnest patriot, the 
enlightened freeman, and the Christian citizen in his course of action ; and to agree 
upon those plans and laws which should govern them in a united and systematic 
working method with which, in some measure, shall be effected the preservation of 
the grand results of the war, the fruits of their labor and toil, so as to benefit the 
deserving and worthy. 

Section II. The results which are designed to be accomplished by this organi- 
zation are as follows : 

First. The preservation of those kind and fraternal feelings which have bound 
together, with the strong cords of love and affection, the Comrades-in-arms of many 
battles, sieges, and marches. 

Second. To make these ties available in works and results of kindness, of favor, 
and material aid to those in need of assistance. 

Third. To make provision, where it is not already done, for the support, care, 
and education of soldiers' orphans, and for the maintenance of the widows of 
deceased soldiers. 

Fourth. For the protection and assistance of disabled soldiers, whether disabled 
by wounds, sickness, old age, or misfortune. 

Fifth. For the establishment and defence of the late soldiery of the United 
States, morally, socially, and politically, with a view to inculcate a proper apprecia- 
tion of their services to the country, and to a recognition of such services and claims 
by the American people. 



23 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 



The First Department 

The first Department organized was that of Illinois, at this 
Convention of Springfield, The growth of the Grand Army of 
the Republic was very slow in the beginning ; the result of the 
plan seemed very doubtful to many, but at the time of the opening 
of the Convention thirty-nine Posts had been chartered. 

Notwithstanding the Constitution provided that State organi- 
zations should be composed of one delegate from each county or 
district, it was not strictly adhered to, as the call for the Conven- 
tion was as follows : 

A Convention of the members of the Grand Army of the Republic and Illinois 
soldiers and sailors will be held in the hall of the House of Representatives at 
Springfield, 111., on Thursday, July 12th, 1S66. 

The business to be transacted at this meeting is of the highest importance to 
all honorably discharged soldiers and sailors. 

Delegates are expected from every Post in the State. 

As many of our soldiers have not had an opportunity to join our Army, they 
will be mustered in on that occasion. 

The soldiers of the State of lUinois who desire to assist in the care of the fami- 
lies of their fallen Comrades, of the disabled and unfortunate, who would assist each 
other by acts of friendship and of charity, and who wish to establish and maintain 
the rights of the volunteer soldiers of the late war, morally, socially, and politically, 
are requested to meet with us. 

There were eighty-nine persons present at this Convention, 
and the principal business transacted was the perfection of a 
Department organization and the election of Department 
Officers. 

Major-General John M. Palmer was elected Department 
Commander. He became the head of the Order by this election, 
the national organization not having been completed. 

It was a grievous disappointment to Major Stephenson not 
to be chosen the Department Commander, but it was decided 
that the Order would advance more rapidly and receive more 
popular recognition with an officer of rank who had served 
throughout the war in prominent service. Major-General Pal- 
mer had commanded two divisions during the war — one in the 

24 




GENERAL JOHN M. PALMER 
FIRST COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

Fourth and one in the Fourteenth Army Corps, and later had 
commanded the Fourteenth and Twenty-first Corps. He after- 
wards became Governor of Illinois, and served in that capacity 
from 1869 to 1873. 

The disappointment of Major Stephenson was to some 
extent relieved by his assumption of the position of Commander- 
in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, and he gave his 
attention to other States. 

The formation of other Departments was in progress until, 
in October, 1866, the States of Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, and 
Minnesota were counted among the organized Departments, 
and Posts had been formed in Ohio, Missouri, Kentucky, 
Arkansas, District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New York, and 
Pennsylvania. 

On November 20, 1866, a National Convention was convened 
at Indianapolis, Ind., which was composed of representatives 
from Posts and by District and Department Officers. This 
representation was not strictly in accord with the Constitution, 
amended at Springfield, which prescribed that each Department 
should have but two representatives in the national organization, 
but it would have been impracticable at that early day to organ- 
ize a National Encampment on that basis. 



1866-1867 

The first National Convention was called by the following 
order : 

Headquarters Grand Army of the Republic, 
Springfield, III., October 31, 1S66. 
General Orders, 
No. 13. 

A National Convention of the Grand Army of the Republic is hereby ordered to 
convene at Indianapolis, Ind., at 10 o'clock, on Tuesday, the twentieth day of 
November next, for the purpose of perfecting the National Organization, and the 
transaction of such other business as may come before the Convention. 

The ratio of representation shall be as follows : Each Post shall be entitled to 
one Representative ; and when the membership exceeds one hundred, to one addi- 
tional Representative ; and in the same ratio for every additional one hundred or 
fractional part thereof. 

27 „ 



Lafayette Post, No. 1 40, 

All Department and District Ofificers, cx-officio, shall be members of said Con- 
vention. 

All honorably discharged soldiers and sailors, and those now serving in the 
Army, desirous of becoming members of the Grand Army of the Republic, are 
respectfully invited to attend the Convention. 

All Comrades are requested to wear the " blue," with Corps badges, etc. 

B. F. Stephenson, 
Commander-in-Chief, G. A. R., U. S. 
Official : 

J. C. Webber, 

Adjt.-Gcn'l, Depf. Illinois. 

There were 228 Representatives present at this Convention, 
representing the following Departments : District of Columbia, 
I ; Illinois, 34 ; Indiana, 14S ; Iowa, 6 ; Kansas, i ; Kentucky, 3 ; 
Missouri, 9; New York, i; Ohio, 15; Pennsylvania, 3; Wis- 
consin, 7 ; and among them was General Daniel Macauley, of 
Indiana, who afterward removed to New York City and became 
a member of Lafayette Post, No. 140, June 3, 1887. 

Major-General Stephen A. Hurlbut was elected Com- 
mander-in-Chief — the first by election, Major Stephenson hav- 
ing been a provisional officer. 

During the administration of Commander-in-Chief Hurlbut 
the Grand Army of the Republic passed over a very critical 
period, owing to the inability, in consequence of his personal 
affairs, of General Hurlbut to devote proper attention to it. 
Although Major Stephenson was the Adjutant-General, he did 
not possess the faculty of executive direction. 

The National Convention was not convened during the year, 
which gave much dissatisfaction. An appeal was made by 
influential members of the Order to the Commander-in-Chief, 
advising him of the danger of delay, and finally the Senior Vice- 
Commander-in-Chief, McKean, consented to issue the order if 
another appeal to Headquarters should not avail. This neces- 
sity did not arise. General Orders, No. 46, were issued by the 
Commander-in-Chief, calling for the assembly in Philadelphia on 
January 15, 1S68. Department Commanders were required to 
call a meeting of their Departments, if not already done, prior to 
the date of the National Convention to elect delegates thereto. 




SECOND COM.MANDER-IN-CniEF DIED MARCH 2/, 1 882 



Department of New York, G. A. H. 

There were twenty-one Departments represented and i86 
Delegates present. 

An emphasis was given at this session to th(; words "with- 
out regard to former rank," in referring back the report of the 
Committee on Credentials to eliminate the military titles of 
Comrades. 

The financial report showed a deficiency of $1,285.56, the 
disbursements having been $1,637.56 and the receipts $352 — 
such was the result of the system of taxation. The delinquent 
Departments comprised more than 1,400 Posts, and it was 
recommended that each Department should be assessed one 
dollar for each Post therein. This did not bring the needed 
supply, for only $302 was collected. The condition, however, 
was tided over by a personal advance of $500 in cash and the 
payment of bills amounting to nearly $1,400 by Comrade J. T. 
Owen, of Philadelphia, which advance was not repaid in full 
until the lapse of three years. 

The most serious danger attending the Organization, how- 
ever, was the partisan nature of the Order that was growing 
with it and had already nearly destroyed it in the West. A 
secret organization for partisan purposes was considered by 
many to be un-American and prejudicial to good results. 

This was a crucial year for the Order. At this National 
Encampment it was proposed to alter the terms of the Declara- 
tion of Principles and to more closely define them, that it might 
be clearly understood that the Order was to be non-partisan. 
This caused an animated debate, some maintaining that the 
Organization should be political in its purport, while others held 
that it could not be held together if it should cause the popular 
belief to become a certainty that it was a secret political associa- 
tion. After a long and warm discussion an amendment to the 
proposition was carried, "that this Association does not design 
to make nominations for office or to use its influence as a secret 
organization for partisan purposes." 

Up to this time the personal welfare of the soldier had 
received but little consideration at the hands of the National 
Government. Service in the Army or Navy was considered 

31 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 



more of a disqualification than a qualification for service in a 
civil office, and so remarkable did this distinction against the 
soldier or sailor become that the Delegates of this Encampment 
adopted strong resolutions memorializing Congress to frame a 
law so that honorable service as a soldier or sailor of the country 
should constitute a qualification for appointment, and that a 
definite and equitable number should be chosen from the list of 
applicants, if shown to possess the requisite skill and fitness. 
Also, to protect those already in the civil employment of the 
Government from being discriminated against by those having 
the power of removal in any future reduction of the number in 
civil employment. 

The resolutions to this effect were engrossed, and certified 
copies were sent to the President of the Senate and Speaker of 
the House of Representatives, with the request that Senators 
and Representatives should give the sub- 
ject their early and earnest attention. 

These resolutions became very effective, 
and many a defender of the flag owes his 
livelihood to this early petition and remon- 
strance. 

The original badge of the Grand Army of 
the Republic was adopted during this term, 
but was of short duration, its symbolic ex- 
pressions being incomplete and inadequate. 
County or District organizations were abolished by this 
Encampment, and, at the election of officers, Major-General 
John A. Logan, of Illinois, was chosen to be Commander-in- 
Chief, although he was not present at the Encampment. 




ORIGINAL BADGE 




THIRD COM MAN 



DER-IN-CHIEF DIED DECEMBER 26, I 886 



Department of New York, G. A. K. 
1868 

Memorial Day 

One of the earliest acts of Commander-in-Chief Log-an was 
to issue the following order : 

Headquarters Grand Army of the Republic, 
Washington, D. C, May 5, 186S. 
General Orders, \ 
No. II. j 

I. The thirtieth day of May, 1S6S, is designated for the purpose of strewing with 
flowers, or otherwise decorating, the graves of Comrades who died in defence of their 
country during the late Rebelhon, and whose bodies now He in ahiiost every city, 
village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance no form of cere- 
mony is prescribed, but Posts and Comrades will in their own way arrange such 
fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit. 

We are organized. Comrades, as our Regulations tell us, for the purpose, among 
other things, " of preserving and strengthening those kind and fraternal feehngs 
which have bound together the soldiers, sailors, and marines who united to suppress 
the late Rebellion." What can aid more to assure this result than by cherishing 
tenderly the memory of our heroic dead, who made their breasts a barricade between 
our country and its foes ? Their soldier lives were the reveille of freedom to a race 
in chains, and their deaths the tattoo of rebellious tyranny in arms. We should 
guard their graves with sacred vigilance. All that the consecrated wealth and taste of 
the Nation can add to their adornment and security is l)ut a fitting tribute to the 
memory of her slain defenders. Let no wanton foot tread rudely on such hallowed 
ground. Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and 
fond mourners. Let no vandalism or avarice or neglect, no ravages of time, testify 
to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the 
cost of a free and undivided Republic. 

If other eyes grow dull, and other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the 
solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remain 
to us. 

Let us, then, at the time appointed, gather around their sacred remains, and 
garland the passionless mounds above them with the choicest flowers of springtime ; 
let us raise above them the dear old flag they saved from dishonor ; let us in this 
solemn presence renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left 
among us, a sacred charge \\\iO\\ a Nation's gratitude — the soldier's and sailor's 
widow and orphan. 

II. It is the purpose of the Commander-in-Chief to inaugurate this observ-- 
ance, with the hope that it will be kept up from year to year while a survivor of the 

35 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

war remains to honor the memory of his departed Comrades. He earnestly desires 
the pubhc press to call attention to this order and lend its friendly aid in bringing 
it to the notice of Comrades in all parts of the country in time for simultaneous 
compliance therewith. 

III. Department Commanders will use every effort to make this order effective. 

By command of 
N. P. Chipman, John A. Logan, 

Adjutant- General. Co?nmander-in- Chief. 

The origin of Memorial Day has been for several years a 
subject of discussion in many circles, and the press has been 
called upon to give a history of it almost every recurring sea- 
son since the order of Commander-in-Chief Logan inaugurating 
it was issued. It has been claimed that a custom prevailing in 
Germany, where the people decorate the graves of their friends 
with flowers in springtime, was brought to the attention of 
General Logan, through the Adjutant-General of the Grand 
Army, by a private soldier of the Union Army who was a native 
of Germany ; but this cannot be traced farther than the mem- 
ory of General Chipman, who recalls the incident, but not the 
name of the soldier. 

The issuing of the order, however, was not the beginning of 
the decorating of soldiers' graves. Before its promulgation a 
"Decoration Day " had been observed in Southern States by 
veteran Confederates. Li 1866 the graves of soldiers had been 
decorated by a band of their living Comrades at Waterloo, New 
York, and it has been stated that Posts in Cincinnati, Ohio, had 
assembled in 1867 to decorate their Comrades' graves. 

It may be interesting to those who still honor the custom, 
and faithfully and reverently perform the beautiful tribute to 
those whom they still remember as Comrades with whom they 
touched elbow in the memorable four years of war, to learn from 
the widow of General Logan the story as she remembers it after 
so many years. 

The wTiter, of whom the question of the origin of the beau- 
tiful and sanctified custom had often been asked, sought of Mrs, 
Logan the information desired, and now for the first time makes 
public her reply : 

36 




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Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

It seems almost incredible, after all these years, that there 
should have been any who doubted the wisdom of inaugurating 
so beautiful and refined an observance. Notwithstanding the 
example of the Confederates in adopting such a custom, many 
claimed that it would keep alive the memories of the war and 
nourish animosities that should be allowed to die a natural 
death. 

There has been no act of the Grand Army which has done 
more to preserve the Order and to nourish a proper spirit of 
reverence, and forgiveness too, than the annual observance of 
Memorial Day, which has been hallowed by the sweet compan- 
ionship of flowers as they were gathered from every hill-side 
and strewn upon every known grave. No flowers are too rich or 
rare to be a becoming sacrifice on the graves of fallen soldiers, 
of which none too humble to be forgotten. The dead of both 
armies in many places lie side by side in known and unknown 
graves, and the Union and Confederate mourners have ex- 
changed flowers of tribute as they did homage to valor and 
banished hatred from their minds. 

On Guard 

It may not be generally known that the country was saved 
from another civil strife early in the year 1868 by the courage 
and steadfastness of Commander-in-Chief Logan and the assur- 
ance of support he received from members of the Order during 
the exciting days when President Johnson attempted the re- 
moval from office of Mr. Stanton, the Secretary of War. The 
resignation of Mr. Stanton had been requested in August, 1867. 
He refused to resign, and General U. S. Grant was appointed 
provisional Secretary of War. When, in January, 1868, the 
Senate declined to concur in the dismissal of Mr. Stanton, 
General Grant vacated the War Office, and Mr. Stanton again 
took possession. In February an order was issued by the 
President summarily dismissing Mr. Stanton, who refused to 
vacate the office or acknowledge the legality of the President's 
order. The movements of the President were closely watched 

44 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

by men of will and patriotism, and Mr. Stanton was supported 
and advised by loyal and able advisers. Commander-in-Chief 
Logan, then a member of the House of Representatives, at- 
tended to his duties during the day ; met his Grand Army staff 
in the evening at Willard's Hotel, where he lived ; and spent 
the night with Mr. Stanton in the War Office, which the Secre- 
tary did not leave night or day lest it should be seized in his 
absence. Sentinels of Grand Army men were posted at con- 
venient places, and signals were arranged for assembly at the 
War Office should an attempt be made to seize the office and 
dispossess the occupant. Arms and ammunition were secretly 
issued to the Comrades, who hardly realized the purpose of the 
issue, but were loyal to their leaders, and would have obeyed 
the orders given, even if to lay down their lives in their support. 
This had a most salutary effect, for 
by some means or other the Presi- 
dent learned of these manoeuvres, 
and questioned General Logan 
about them. He was assured that 
any attempt to forcibly eject the 
Secretary and take possession of the 
War Department would be met by 
a force of soldiery ready to respond 
in opposition to his plans to obtain 
control of the Army for the perpetu- 
ation of his personal power. 



Change of Badge 

The National Council of Admin- 
istration met in the quarters of 
Post I, Philadelphia, October i, 
1868, to consider principally the 
matter of a better design for a badge 
of the Order. The change in the 

original badge was made by the addition of an eagle above 
and a circle below, the latter to contain the insignia of rank for 

45 




Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

an officer. Although this badge was adopted and contracts 
entered into with a manufacturer for many qualities, ranging in 
price from forty cents to twenty-five dollars each, they were not 
completed, because of the failure of the manufacturer. 

The Badge 

There was, in addition to the failure of the manufacturer 
who had received the contract for the badoe of 1868, a strong 
opposition to its incompleteness, as well as to the variety of 
materials it was to be made from, and the varied prices. 

It was therefore recommended to the Special Encampment, 
held in New York during the present year, that a design 
arranged by General F. A. Starring,* Inspector-General of the 
Grand Army of the Republic, should be adopted. Circular 
No. 2, from National Headquarters, issued in February, 1870, 
describes the badge as follows : 

" The badge is of bronze, made from cannon captured in 
different decisive battles during the late Rebellion, and in form 
a five-pointed star, similar in design to the two hundred Medals 
of Honor authorized by act of Congress to be given to soldiers 
and sailors most distinguished for meritorious and gallant 
conduct during the late war. 

" The Obverse 

" In the centre of the badge is the figure of the Goddess 
of Liberty, representing Loyalty ; on either side a soldier and 
a sailor clasping hands, representing Fraternity ; and two chil- 
dren receiving benediction and assurance of protection from the 
Comrades, representing Charity. On each side of the group is 
the national flag, and the eagle, representing Freedom, and the 
axe and bundle of rods, or fasces, representing Union. In each 
point of the star are the insignia of the various arms of the 
service, viz.: The Biiglc for Infantry, Cross Cannon for Artillery, 
Cross Mtiskcts for the Marine, Cross Sioords for Cavalry, and 

* General Frederick A. Starring was a member of Lafayette Post, No. 140, Department of 
New York, from May, 1895, to January, 1899. 

46 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

\\-\QAncJior for Sailors. Over the central i^roup ar(! the words, 
'Grand Army of the Republic'; and under, the word and 
ficrures, ' 1 86 1 — Veteran — 1866,' commemoratino- the beginning 





and close of the Rebellion, and also the date of the organiza- 
tion of the Order. 

" The Reverse 

represents a branch of laurel — the crown and reward of the 
brave — in each point of the star. The national shield in the 
centre, surrounded by twenty-four recognized Corps badges, 
numerically arranged, each on a keystone, and all linked to- 
gether, showing they are united and will guard and protect the 
shield of the Nation, Around the centre is a circle of stars, 
representing the States of the Union and the Departments com- 
posing the Grand Army of the Republic. 

47 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 



" The Clasp 

is composed of the figure of an Eagle, with Cross, Cannon, and 
Ammunition, representing Defence, the Eagle with drawn sword 
hovering over and always ready to protect from insult or dis- 
honor the National Flag, which is also the Emblem and Ribbon 
of the Order." 

1869 

The third annual Encampment of the Grand Army of the 
Republic was held at Cincinnati, May 12th, on which occasion 
Commander-in-Chief John A. Logan presided. His address at 
the opening frames a wonderful picture of the disbandment of 
the armies, without any resulting features of lawlessness or 
chaos; among other reasons given was the influence of the 
Grand Army of the Republic. The address is a finished piece 
of oratory, and worthy of repetition whenever occasion permits : 

Extract from Annual Address 

In classic days both republican and imperial Rome had been shaken to its 
centre by disbanded soldiery, while in Greece and Spain the mountain fastnesses 
had been filled with desperadoes from such bodies, whose subsistence was wrung 
from passing travellers or peaceful /uirh/h/as. Even our neighboring Republic of 
Mexico had furnished examples of the danger to mankind of forcing bodies of 
soldiers from their avocation to the quiet scenes of ordinary life. 

But neither Rome, Greece, Spain, nor Mexico was ever tried by such an ordeal 
as ours. Their disbanded armies were, in comparison with ours, almost as nothing. 
In fact, there is not in human history a case cited, except ours, in which a million 
of soldiers were, in a day, removed from belligerent to peaceful life. Probably 
there is no government on earth, except our own, that would have dared to try 
the experiment. I am confident there is no other in which such a trial would 
be safe. 

No outbreak, no revolution, no disaster of any magnitude has followed the 
segregation of these million warriors. They sought their homes with joyful hearts 
and tuneful voices. There were no tears of mourning over the cast-off trappings 
and habiliments of strife. The hand grown cunning in the use of arms applied 
itself to the axe, the hammer, the loom, and the spade. Battle shouts had given place 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

to exultations over victory, and tiiese, in turn, were followed by the songs of joy, of 
love and peace, that sanctify that place of heaven called home. 

Very much of this sublime result is due, doubtless, to the form of government 
under which we live ; much is attril)utable to the educational influences among 
which we were reared ; and much, very much, to the organization known as the 
Grand Army of the Republic. 

This Order originated in a desire for mutual protection, aid, ?nd education. 
AVe never feared that the toils and sufferings of our soldiery would be forgotten or 
fail to be appreciated by the mass of our countrymen, but we did fear that high 
officials might at times be prompted by their selfishness to disregard or neglect us. 

Politically, our object is not to mingle in the strifes of parties, but by our 
strength and numbers to be able to exact from all a recognition of our rights with 
others. 

We desire, further, by this organization, to commemorate the gallantry and 
sufferings of our Comrades, give aid to bereaved families, cultivate fraternal 
sympathy among ourselves, find employment for the idle, and, generally, by our acts 
and precepts, to give the world a practical example of unselfish, manly cooperation. 

Thus far our efforts have proved successful. The report of the Adjutant- 
General will present fully the history and progress of our Order, and more than 
sustain our highest hopes of the future. The burden of many crosses has been 
lifted from many hearts. Famishing souls and bodies have been fed. Manly 
excellence has been developed and cultivated, while public, social, and domestic life 
among our Comrades has been purified and blessed through our humane endeavors. 

I congratulate you that our Order flourishes now as it never has done before, 
and that peace, tranquillity, and industry are comparatively universal among our- 
selves and throughout our national domain. 

Let us foster and cherish this benevolent Order, so useful in the past, so 
beneficent in the present, and giving such promise for the future. Let us unite in 
vigorous efforts to extend and perpetuate its power. 

While in the flush and strength of manhood we may not fully grasp and realize 
the fact that man's true interest lies in doing good ; but when the golden bowl of 
life is breaking, when our faces become carved in storied hieroglyphics by the stylus 
and pantagraph of age, each act of kindness done, each word of kindness spoken, 
will, by natural compensating law, return, like the dove of Ararat, to the soul from 
which it was sent, and bearing with it branches of unfading green from the Post 
" beyond the river." 

Although the beautiful words and glowing eloquence of 
Commander-in-Chief Logan congratulated the Organization on 
its moral progress, it was in a most discouraging condition from 
a practical point of view. It was believed by the general public, 
and by veterans as well, that it was a. secret political society, and 
this belief deterred many from uniting with it in membership. 

49 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

A debt hung over the Order for borrowed money and unpaid 
bills, and the discipline among the Posts and Departments was 
remarkably lax. 

It became necessary that extraordinary efforts should be put 
forth to overcome the causes which prevented practical, numeri- 
cal, and financial prosperity. The Rules and Regulations were 
enlarged and rearranged, and, in order to attract members to 
the Post meetings and increase or maintain an interest, the 
Ritual was arranged to cover three grades of membership : 
First, Recruit. Second, Soldier. Third, Veteran. Members 
of the First Grade were not eligible to office, nor privileged to 
take any part in the Post meetings. Membership as a Recruit 
for two months after muster was necessary before the Recruit 
could be advanced to the Second Grade, and a member of the 
Second Grade could not be advanced to the Third, or Veteran, 
Grade until after a probation of six months in the Second 
Grade. The office of Commander, Senior and Junior Vice- 
Commanders, Adjutant, Quartermaster, Surgeon, Chaplain, 
Officer of the Day, and Officer of the Guard could only be 
filled by members of the Veteran Grade, although Second Grade 
members were entitled to vote. 

To advance from First to Second Grade required an appli- 
cation, and the recommendation in writing of two members of 
the Second Grade, and an election by a two-thirds vote. 

An advancement to the Third Grade from the Second re- 
quired the same form as for the Second. Members of the First 
Grade were admitted to the meetings of the Second Grade, but 
were not privileged to do anything but think ; but they must 
absent themselves during the advancement of Recruit to Soldier. 

Third Grade, or Veteran, members only were eligible to De- 
partment or National offices, or to be delegates to either of the 
Encampments, and the appointments of the Commander-in-Chief 
or Department Commanders must be made from this grade. 

There was a Ritual provided for each of the three grades, 
with signs, grips, and passwords. 

General Orders, No. 3, were issued June 3d, to put in opera- 
tion the grade system, which contained the following provisions : 

50 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

First. That the following shall be eligible to the Third (Irade upon their taking 
the several obligations : 

All present and past officers of the National Encampment and of the several 
Department Encampments ; all present and past Commanders, Vice-Commanders, 
Adjutants, Quartermasters, Surgeons, and Chaplains of Posts, together with all 
members of the Grand Army of the Republic who shall have been members eight 
months ; provided, that they shall be in good standing in their respective Posts and 
Departments, and free from all dues on the first of July, 1869 ; and provided, they 
take the several obligations prior to the first day of September, 1869. 

Second. Provided, that Comrades who have been members two months shall 
constitute the Second Grade on taking the obligations, etc. 

Third. All Recruits received on and after July i, 1869, shall constitute the 
First Grade. 

This legislation, however, did not improve the condition. 
The adhesive power of form and ceremony in Freemasonry had 
no influence for good in the Grand Army of the Republic. Its 
loadstone was to be helpfulness. Without the power and nu- 
merical strength of the Grand Army of the Republic, with the 
potential influence of its political affinity, the veteran of the 
Civil War would have had a sorry protection from the Govern- 
ment, which had been saved by men weakened through expo- 
sure and irregularity of life. It required a deeper and sincerer 
influence than ceremony and display to keep together the vet- 
erans of hardship. 

It was but natural that a resource of some nature should be 
adopted to revive the depression that had enveloped the Order, 
and the success of other societies which had adopted degrees 
invited and encouraged the adoption of a similar system to sup- 
port and enlarge the Grand Army of the Republic. 

The adoption of the resolutions providing for the grade sys- 
tem practically banished from the Order all who neglected or 
declined to take the new obligation, and many did refuse, claim- 
ing that they were members and could not be ruled out by new 
regulations. Department Commanders and Post Commanders 
in many instances lost interest in their commands and allowed 
matters to drift whithersoever they would. Thousands of mem- 
bers were lost to the Order, and even whole Posts dropped out 
of existence. 

51 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

It had been estimated that 240,000 members were enrolled 
before the adoption -of the grade system, but these figures are 
uncertain because of the imperfect manner of making returns 
or keeping records ; yet the loss was severe, because after a 
two years' trial of the system only 25,000 members could be 
accounted for. 

The other exceptionally strong hindrance, not only to the 
progress of the Order, but to the maintenance of it, was the 
opinion that politics was a feature that held it in control. 
The necessity therefore existed that some decisive action should 
be taken to remove the impression, correct or erroneous as it 
might prove to be. 

It is not remembered that there were any fears expressed 
because of the existence of an organization of a quarter of a 
million of men bound together by secret oath, as there would 
have been in other countries if such a condition existed, but it 
was not considered to be a healthy existence for so large a 
number to be politically plotting in secret, hence the Order with 
such an attribute was not favored by those ineligible; and many 
who were eligible were too honest in their own convictions to ally 
themselves with an organization so justly open to adverse criti- 
cism while the impression of political plotting in secret prevailed. 

The Committee on Resolutions of the Encampment in 
session made a report presenting several preambles and resolu- 
tions which were unanimously adopted. They w^ere strong and 
frank ; they reiterated the purposes of the Order, eschewed 
politics in every ulterior form, and openly avowed the principles 
of its foundation and sustenance. 

Extract from the Report of the Committee on Resolutions 

IVhereas, The Organization known as the Grand Army of the Republic is founded 
upon the glorious and world-wide-embracing principles of fraternity, charity, and 
loyalty to our flag and country ; and 

IVheiras, Its success in the past is the best guarantee of its future prosperity ; and 
JVhej-eas, The welfare of our living Comrades, and that of the orphans and 
widows of the honored dead, and the maintenance of our sacred principles, demand 
renewed efforts in its behalf ; therefore, by the National Encamj^ment, through the 
representatives here assembled, be it 
:. 52 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

Resolved, That the destiny of the (Irand Army of the Republic is not fulfilled 
until it shall embrace within its protective folds every one of the million of honor- 
ably discharged soldiers of the several arms of the service during the late War of 
the Rebellion ; until the families of those requiring assistance are beyond the reach 
of want, and their children properly educated and cared for by the country; and 
until the last faithful veteran soldier has surrendered without dishonor to the (Ireat 
C'onqueror of all mankind, and has been released from his bonds, and mustered 
into a grander army above. 

Resolved, That it is through this Organization alone that the bonds of fraternal 
feeling can be successfully sustained and strengthened, and the electric currents of 
sympathy and brotherly affection, born of common toil and danger, be evolved and 
hastened in their courses through the thousand hearts scattered over the wide expanse 
of our ever-growing empire. 

Resolved, That that charity which speaks through kind actions and benevolent 
deeds and sacrificing efforts for those associated with us shall ever be one of our 
cardinal ])rinciples, and carefully exemplified in our practice. 

Resolved, That we shall cling to the principles and practices of loyalty to flag 
and country with the same pertinacity and energy with which we sustained it in the 
field ; and that no foe, foreign or domestic, shall ever find us backward in rushing 
to the rescue of the Government we have saved, by whatever danger it may be 
assailed ; that our hearts still beat time to the " music of the Union," and will ever 
be found vibrating in harmony with the pulsations of the national life. 

Resolved, That whatsoever suspicion of political nature may have heretofore 
attached to the Grand Army of the Republic as to its being a political organization, 
that we hereby declare it above and independent of all partisan feeling and action, 
and actuated only by a determination to sustain to the fullest extent the principles 
so clearly defined in the Rules and Regulations adopted by the National Encamp- 
ment, and embracing only the patriotic duties enjoined by charity, fraternity, and 
loyalty to flag and country, including a just condemnation of that fell spirit of 
rebellion which would have destroyed not only the country, but rooted liberty itself 
out of the land. 

Resolved, That in the name of our Comrades scattered throughout this broad 
land we desire to express our gratitude to the citizens and legislators of those States 
which have established homes and schools for the maintenance and education of the 
orphans of our deceased brethren, and that we invoke the blessings of Heaven upon 
them. And that we earnestly urge upon the citizens and legislators of those States 
where no such provision has been made, to take immediate steps to fulfil the 
obligations imposed upon them by the casualties of the late war, and to redeem 
their pledges made to the brave volunteers, to care for their families during their 
absence, and, in case of their death, by establishing homes for both orphans and 
widows, so far as their necessities may demand. 

Resolved, That the pledges and recommendations made by conventions and 
legislative bodies to give preference to soldiers (other things being equal) for 
appointment to civil avocations and government positions, whereby our disabled 

53 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

Comrades might serve both the country and themselves at the same time, and be 
enabled to earn an honest and honorable livelihood, are daily impressed upon our 
minds by the fact that their claims for labor and position are, in many portions of 
our country, almost entirely ignored ; and that, in the name of our crippled Com- 
rades, we respectfully ask the honorable redemption of those pledges. 

Commander-in-Chief John A. Logan was reelected to suc- 
ceed himself at this Encampment. 

At the special National Encampment of October 27th a com- 
mittee consisting of the Commander-in-Chief and the two \ ice- 
Commanders-in-Chief was appointed to consider the practica- 
bility of a project of life insurance, with power to procure a 
charter from Congress if the plan should be considered feasible. 



1870 

The fourth annual session of the National Encampment 
was held in Washington, D. C, May 11, 1870. Commander-in- 
Chief Logan presided, and again addressed the assembly in his 
wonderfully eloquent strain. 

Extracts from General Logan's Address 

We meet to-day, not as relics of a disastrous war, marred and scarred by the 
enginery of battle, to beg for alms ; not as burdens upon the hands of public charity, 
but as the survivors of a glorious and successful struggle on behalf of liberty and 
independence for all men. We meet in the strength and integrity of our manhood, 
to take counsel together in aid of measures to promote brotherly love, universal be- 
nevolence, stability, and order ; we meet to renew our vows of fealty to each other 
and mankind ; we meet as the representatives of the loyal American soldiery, whose 
organic law is unblemished by any invidious distinctions. We realize that to no par- 
ticular race or sect belongs the glory of our victories, but that in the Union Army 
were found Comrades of every clime and creed, who came, as in the days of '76, to 
offer themselves to do, and die if need be, that Liberty might live and bless their 
posterity with an equal share in her blessings. No self-constituted victor can say, 
" Behold me, the conqueror ! " But each can claim the honor of answering to his 
country's roll call when danger was nigh, and in this they have performed the hero's 
deeds and deserve the hero's reward. 

The objects of our Organization seem not to be fully understood by a portion of 
our fellow citizens. You will, therefore, excuse me if I give a brief sketch of the 

54 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

purpose of the Grand Army for the information of those who may be ])reju(Hce(l 
against us as a secret order. 

The Grand Army of the Repubhc is not a pohtical organization destined to serve 
the ends of any pohtical party, as is evident in this, that all i)olitical parties are repre- 
sented in its membership. As men and patriots, many of us mingle in national and local 
affairs, but in doing so, do not take with us any benefits or provisions of our Order, 
our only political creed being the love of our country and its hallowed institutions. 

We have but three objects obligatory upon us as members of this Order ; namely, 
to promote the love and practice of fraternity, liberal distributions of charity, and 
unequivocal loyalty. The founders of the Order were actuated by the fact that when 
the war ended we had on this continent a million and a half of fighting men, a greater 
part of whom were our own Comrades, good and true, who were in no haste to lose 
sight of every trace of the associations of a soldier's life, and let " old acquaintance 
be forgot." They were flushed with such victories as no soldiers ever were before ; 
hence they needed some resort where they might meet together in social reunion 
and interchange experiences and opinions, and thereby keep alive the vivid scenes 
of war, interspersed with incidents full of interest to them, and needed something to 
check the impulsive, whose very spirit and fire made them such good soldiers. Hence 
it was conceived that good might spring from these reunions, and that, with certain 
rules and regulations, they might promote pleasure and security to the independent, 
and material aid to the dependent, and organize the survivors of the war into an 
Order that would be perpetual in its existence, and so successful in its good work as 
to shed additional lustre upon its members. 

Ours was the first and only organization to institute an annual commemoration 
to the departed heroes of the war ; and to us, by common consent, appears to be 
committed the mournful and pleasing duty of perpetuating it. 

It should be the aim of the Grand Army to bring within its fold every honor- 
ably discharged soldier and sailor, and, by the constant exercise of the virtues we 
profess, exert an influence second only to the Church of Christ. Exalting the hopes 
and aspirations of our own members, we thereby help to give a proper tone to public 
sentiment, and crush out all opposition to civilization, loyalty, and Christianity, as 
well as hold our Organization above the criticism of the most fastidious, who, behold- 
ing our "good works," will rise up "and call us blessed." We shall need no appeal 
to call forth the support of all good citizens, who will gladly sustain our lectures and 
other means of support to our family of sufferers, in whose interest we have solicited 
public patronage, with liberal responses already. 

The tree of liberty, watered and trained by the influences of the Grand Army, 
will send forth no disloyal shoots to dishonor our flag ; but every branch, as it takes 
up its burden of life, will have that vital principle of loyalty so engrafted that treason 
can never destroy it. And when the Encampments that know us now " shall know 
us no more forever," the feeling of fraternal regard we have nourished will shed its 
silent tear over our graves ; the charity we have promoted will throw its mantle over 
our shortcomings ; and the spirit of loyalty we have cultivated will still rally round 
the flag we loved, to perpetuate our memories. 

55 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

This Encampment was attended by nineteen Departments 
and fifty-two Representatives. Twelve Departments were not 
represented, and seven were delinquent in their reports. The 
Quartermaster-General's report showed some financial advance 
during the year, notwithstanding the National Encampment 
remained in debt $2,500 for borrowed money. 

The important changes in the Rules and Regulations were 
the permanent establishing of Memorial Day, and providing for 
the election of Post Officers annually instead of semi-annually. 

General Logan was elected Commander-in-Chief for the third 
time, and the Committee on Resolutions presented the following, 
which was unanimously adopted : 

The Grand Army of the RepubHc, in National Encampment assembled in the 
city of Washington, congratulates every Comrade on the successful extension of the 
triple bond of Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty which nfow so fraternally unites those 
who rallied beneath the Stars and Stripes when the life of the Nation was assailed, 
and presents the following matters as entitled to the indorsement of the Order : 

1. Resolved, As soldiers of the Union Army for the suppression of the late Rebel- 
lion, we recognize no character more exalted as a soldier and patriot than the late 
]\Iajor-General George H. Thomas, and that it is with unfeigned sorrow that we, his 
recent Comrades-in-arms, find ourselves called upon to mourn his demise ; and that 
in his unsullied character, his preeminent abilities as a commander, and his untar- 
nished patriotism, he has, together with his great services against the enemies of 
his country and of the Union, left a rich legacy to the world, and a life worthy the 
emulation of mankind. 

2. Resolved, That the memory of those who died that the Nation might live 
should be kept green in the hearts of the people of the United States by the sacred 
observance of the 30th of May as a day dedicated to the decoration of their graves ; 
and we trust that the general Government will not fail to exercise, under the war 
power, its sovereignty over such of those hallowed resting places of our departed 
Comrades as are in that section of country which they bravely aided in conquering, 
and not ask permission of the conquered, that the soil thus consecrated may be the 
nation's forever. 

3. Resolved, That all Departments and Posts of the Grand Army, and all Com- 
rades in their individual capacities, use their utmost endeavors to promptly secure 
legislative action in their respective States, in aid of the establishment and main- 
tenance of homes and schools for the support and education of the orphans of 
Union soldiers and marines, without distinction of birthplace or of race, who were 
killed or who died in consequence of wounds received, or disease contracted, while 
in the service of the United States. 

4. Resolved, That while we recognize the equality of all soldiers who were mus- 

56 



Department of New York, G. A. H. 

tered in, we respectfully suggest to the officers of the National Asylum for Disal^led 
Soldiers, so liberally endowed by Congress, the propriety of promoting the comfort 
of the colored veterans entitled to a home, by establishing a branch asylum at the 
South for their occupation. 

5. Resolved, That we earnestly request Congress to consider the propriety and 
justice of passing an act donating suitable tracts of the public lands to those soldiers, 
sailors, and marines who honorably served in the Army or Navy of the Nation during 
the late war for the suppression of the rebellion, in accordance with the i)recedents 
established in former wars. 

187I 

The year 1870 had been even more quiet and uneventful 
than the previous ones. There seemed to be but Httle energy 
in the Order, and to all appearances it was drifting into a posi- 
tion where few could discover any of the good results promised 
or the benefits expected. 

The Encampment of 1S71 was held in Boston, May loth. 

The address of Commander-in-Chief John A. Logan was, 
as usual, beautiful in expression and helpful to the wavering 
perhaps, but the sentiments expressed were a repetition of his 
former efforts. There were no recommendations advanced to 
lift the Order out of its state of listlessness, yet it was a master- 
piece of literature, that presented the objects of the Organiza- 
tion to the fullest view. 

Extracts from General Logan's Address 

Another circuit of the seasons brings again the time of the annual meeting of the 
Representatives of the Grand Army of the Republic. And while earth, seemingly 
thankful that the bright rays of the vernal sun have warmed her from her wintry 
sleep, gives forth from her bosom the green blades and gaudy flowers in grateful re- 
sponse, so we should also feel deeply impressed with a spirit of gratitude to the 
Great Creator and Ruler of the Universe, for the preservation of the lives of so 
many of the members of our Order, and the prosperity of our Organization. We, 
when looking over the past twelve months, and beholding the harmony which has 
prevailed throughout the Order, and the prosperity which has attended it, should 
give forth, in grateful response to the Guardian Hand which has protected and pre- 
served us, the warmest thanks of our hearts, and should feel, if possible, still more 
disposed to exhibit by practice to their fullest extent the characteristic virtues of 
our creed — Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty : Fraternity to our Comrades, Charity 
to our fellow-men, and Loyalty to our country. 

57 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

We have as3embled here to-day, not as an organization for the purpose of 
promoting and fostering selfish ends and personal aims, but as the survivors of a 
mighty but glorious and successful contest in behalf of liberty and union ; not as a 
band combined for the purpose of planning and plotting for the benefit of a few, or 
a restricted class, but in behalf of personal freedom, true independence, and national 
honor. 

We meet in the strength and consciousness of our manhood, with a full knowl- 
edge of our freedom and liberty, but with hearts true and loyal to our country and 
its laws. 

We meet to renew our vows to the great principles of our Order — vows of friend- 
ship and fealty to each other, which shall continue to link us together in fraternal 
bonds ; vows of that universal charity which embraces in its grasp mankind wherever 
found ; vows of devotion and constancy to that Government which we have fought 
to maintain, and which we believe to be the best that man in his wisdom has devised, 
where the great principles for which we contend can be best developed and carried 
out. We meet, also, as the representatives of the great host of loyal American 
soldiers who stood as the bulwark of safet}' to the Nation when its life was in 
jeopardy. 

In the hour of peril we asked not for race or sect, but for soldiers, willing to do 
battle bravely and fearlessly in defence of our Union. To-day we meet, not as the 
representatives of a race or sect, but of those soldiers who came in answer to their 
country's call. 

As citizens we take part freely in national affairs, each following out his own 
individual preference and political inclination, untrammelled by any requirements of 
the Order. The predominance of any political party or bias among the members of 
any particular locality is, so far as the Order is concerned, purely accidental. So 
far as devotion to our national unity and to the great principles of universal freedom 
and benevolence makes us political, thus far we are political, and no farther. 

The successful close of the war sent back into civil life more than a million of 
soldiers, many of whom for years had dwelt in the tented field, with armor on, and 
who, as comrades in the privations and hardships of the soldier's life, could not 
easily forget its associations. The natural yearning of the soldier's heart for an 
occasional reunion with his comrades suggested the idea of the Order to its founders. 
It was, therefore, the natural outgrowth of the times and circumstances, and not 
wholly an original idea conceived in any one mind. With a desire to keep alive 
these associations, and by interchange of experience and opinions to keep fresh 
before the mind the vivid scenes of the war, and incidents of the soldier's life in 
camp, was the organization of the Grand Army of the Republic conceived and 
carried into effect. 

We must remember that great ends are accomplished, not by spasmodic and 
fitful exertions, but by steady, systematic, and persevering movements. This was 
the spirit that nerved us during the fiery ordeal of the late war, and crowned our 
arms with victory. 

Let us, then, strictly conform to our Rules and Regulations, and, systematic as 

5S 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

an army when marching to the field of battle, let us, like good and faithful soldiers, 
press forward in the great work of promoting and extending the cardinal virtues of 
our creed — Fraternity, Charity, and Loyalty — and the tree of liberty, fostered by 
the genial influence of the Grand Army of the Republic, will send forth its inspira- 
tion to the utmost extremity of our beloved country, until every heart shall again be 
warmed by the vital principles of loyalty, and every remnant of treason be driven 
from our land. 

Such is our mission, and such our bright anticipations ; and if true to our faith 
and active in our efforts, when we have met together for the last time, and have 
sounded our last reveille, other tongues and other voices will bless the name and 
work of the Grand Army of the Republic. 

The action of this Encampment in abolishing the grade sys- 
tem was of great benefit to the Order, if it was not the means 
of saving its life. The Committee on Rules, Regulations, and 
Ritual (it seems as though three R's would crop out every now 
and then), in making its report to strike out of the Ritual all 
reference to grades, presented a revised edition, which was 
adopted at the same time that the grades were abolished, and 
put into effect a rule that Comrades must be dropped from mem- 
bership if their dues to their Posts should become one year in 
arrears. 

As should have been expected, such radical changes as the 
two mentioned had the effect of stagnation for a short time. 
Many members had been trimmed out of the Order who had 
been members in name only, and the changing from one system 
of membership to another required time — time to recover from 
wonder and surprise, and time to rearrange the machinery and 
implements of service. 

The membership did not increase during the year, and it is 
remarkable that it did not seriously diminish for the time being, 
there were so many indifferent and delinquent members. 

The condition became almost immediately more healthful. 
Those joining understood that they would be expected to be 
supporting members at least, if not active ; and those remain- 
ing realized that the dead wood would not be allowed to 
accumulate. 

The Resolutions adopted by this Encampment seemed to 
have been rather self-congratulatory, but lacking in enthusiasm. 

5q 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

Resolutions 

The Grand Army of the Repubhc, assembled in National Encampment at 
Boston, congratulates all Comrades upon the rapidly increasing power and strength 
of the Order, and commends to them the action taken at this session, as being 
calculated to promote the cardinal principles of this Association. 

1. Resolved, That the Grand Army of the Republic is in no sense whatever a 
political or partisan organization ; and any Comrade who endeavors to use the Order 
as a political engine, for the purpose of gratifying any selfish political ambition, is 
recreant to his duty to his Comrades. 

2. Resolved, That it is the duty of each and every Comrade of the Grand 
Army of the Republic to urge and do all in his power to promote such legislation, 
both from the several State and National legislative bodies, as will secure ample 
provision for the support and education of the children of those soldiers, sailors, and 
marines who were killed or died of disease contracted while in the service of the 
United States, battling for the integrity of the Union ; and to procure such legisla- 
tion as shall be necessary for the care, protection, and preservation of the graves of 
our dead Comrades, in the different National cemeteries. 

The reports of Staff Officers showed that the Organization 
was practically out of debt, and, all things considered, on a more 
satisfactory and substantial basis. 

Major-General Ambrose E. Burnside, of Rhode Island, was 
elected Commander-in-Chief, which he accepted, and was duly 
installed. 

1871-1872 

At the very outset of his administration Commander-in-Chief 
Burnside (whether by accident or as the result of mature de- 
liberation it would now be difficult to determine) broke away 
from the previous custom in making appointments for his per- 
sonal staff. Regardless, apparently, of geographical lines, the 
appointments were confined to Eastern Comrades : 

Adjutant-General William Cutting New York. 

Assistant Adjutant-General. . . Roswell Miller New York. 

Quartermaster-General Cornelius G. Attwood. . . .Massachusetts. 

Judge- Advocate-General William W. Douglas Rhode Island. 

Inspector-General Robert B. Beath Pennsylvania. 

60 




FOURTH COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF DIED SEPTEMBER 1 3, iSSi 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

And the work of the year of their administration gave abundant 
evidence of the sagacity of the selection. 

This administration year was one of marked progress, the 
result of efficient leaders and of the value of simplicity in ma- 
chinery and a purity of purpose properly and definitely an- 
nounced. The Commander-in-Chief had as his cooperators two 
remarkably efficient officers, who realized the wonderful possi- 
bilities of the Organization and who earnestly set about their 
work with all the possibilities in view. Senior Vice-Commander 
Wagner and Inspector-General Beath, both of whom afterwards 
were elected to the office of Commander-in-Chief, were inde- 
fatigable in their efforts for the substantial progress of the 
Order, and have for the succeeding twenty-nine years been as 
earnest and faithful. These two Comrades have no equals in 
the Grand Army on the plane of labor bestowed for the benefit 
of it. 

Because of the change by eradicating the grade system the 
work of the Adjutant-General's office was greatly increased, and 
it was not unfortunate that Adjutant-General Cutting was forced 
to retire (because his business interests would not permit of his 
devoting any time to the office) in favor of Roswell Miller, 
whose peculiar fitness was made evident by the system and 
success of the reorganization of his department. He served for 
two years without pay, as did all the staff of the Commander-in- 
Chief 

The Quartermaster-General was also proficient and invalu- 
able in his department, bringing his accounts to the Encamp- 
ment at the close of his term in 1872, showing a net credit 
balance, with all debts and bills paid, of over $4,000. 

During the year the Commander-in-Chief was absent in 
Europe for several m.onths, and the duties of his office tell upon 
Senior Vice-Commander-in-Chief Wagner, to whom General 
Burnside owed much of the success of the first year of his 
administration, and which he acknowledged in his address to 
the National Encampment, held May 8, ' 1872, at Cleveland, 
Ohio. 

During the care of the office by General Wagner the secret 

63 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

work of the Order was divulged by some means or another, 
making it necessary to change the work and create a new cipher. 
His first order, however, was a call for relief for suffering Com- 
rades made destitute by the great fire in Chicago in September, 
1871. 

At the National Encampment at Cleveland there were but 
seventy-five Officers and Representatives present, representing 
sixteen Departments. 

The Chaplain-in-Chief reported that Department Com- 
mander Rhodes, of Rhode Island, had invited the clergy of 
that Department to preach sermons on Sunday previous to Me- 
morial Day, commemorative of the Comrades for whom Memo- 
rial Day had been instituted, and the Commander-in-Chief advo- 
cated in strong terms the adoption of such a plan by all the 
Departments. The idea was indorsed by the National En- 
campment and was made part of the General Order for Me- 
morial Day, 

The Rules and Regulations were amended so that all Past 
Commanders-in-Chief and Past Vice-Commanders-in-Chief re- 
maining in good standing in the Order would be members of the 
National Encampment, and all Past Department Commanders in 
good standing would be members of their respective Depart- 
ments. 

General Burnside was reelected Commander-in-Chief. 

The member of the Council of Administration elected to 
represent the Department of New York was A. P. Ketchum.* 



1873 

The seventh annual National Encampment was held May 
14, 1873, ^t New Haven, Conn., at which only sixteen Depart- 
ments were represented, and forty-eight Representatives present, 

Commander-in-Chief Burnside presided, making a short and 
not very enthusiastic address, though expressing his satisfaction 
that the conduct of the Grand Army of the Republic through 

*A. P. Ketchum joined Lafayette Post, January 17, 1890, 
64 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

the exciting political campaign had fully demonstrated its non- 
partisan principles. 

One encouraging feature of the Adjutant-General's report 
was the statement that of the nineteen Departments, which in- 
cluded Illinois, the birthplace of the Order, and Indiana and 
Michigan, reported in 1871 as being disorganized, eleven had 
been revived, and were again reporting regularly. The De- 
partment of Indiana, however, remained in disorder. 

A form of " Burial Service" presented by the Department of 
Massachusetts was received, and Assistant Adjutant-Generals of 
Departments were made members of the National Encampment. 
The office of Department Chief Mustering Officer was created, 
and the appointment placed in the hands of the Commanders 
of Departments. 

An attempt to abolish the plan of secrecy was made, also to 
establish an association as an auxiliary for the wives of members 
of the Grand Army of the Republic, to be called the Clara Barton 
Degree, but it failed in both instances. 

Official Badges 

An amendment to the Rules, providing for a badge for officers 
of the Association, was adopted upon recommendation of a com- 
mittee, who reported as follows : 

The official badge to consist of a miniature strap and plain ribbon, to which 
shall be pendent the bronze star of the membership badge ; that this strap be one- 
half inch in length, one-half inch in width, enamelled, with a border one-sixteenth 
of an inch in width, of gold or gilt, and on it the insignia of official position in the 
Grand Army of the Republic, making use of the familiar star, eagle, leaf, and bar 
of the old service, substantially as determined and recommended for official badges 
by the National Council of Administration, and announced in Circular No. 6, Head- 
quarters Grand Army of the Republic, January 4, 1869; except that for Aides-de- 
Camp to the Commander-in-Chief be substituted a silver eagle, and for Aides-de-Camp 
to Department Commanders, a silver leaf ; for the words " Grand Commander" be 
read " Department Commander " ; that the field in enamel be, for National and De- 
partment Officers, black ; for Post Officers, dark blue. 

That the ribbon be one and one-half inches in length in the clear, and one 
and one-fourth inches in width ; and in color, for National Officers, buff ; for Depart- 
ment Officers, red ; and for Post Officers, light blue. 

65 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

That this badge be worn conspicuously on the left breast of the coat. 

That to distinguish the different Departments, a miniature shield in gold or 
gilt, with the coat of arms of the State, may be worn pendent to the strap. 

The insignia of rank upon the strap to be : 

For Commander-in-Chief, four silver stars. 

For Senior Vice-Commander-in-Chief, three silver stars. 

For Junior Vice-Commander-in-Chief and Department Commanders, two sil- 
ver stars. 

For the ofificial staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Surgeon-General, provisional 
Department Commanders, Senior Vice Department Commanders, one silver star. 

For Junior Vice Department Commanders, one gilt star. 

For the ofificial stafif of the Department Commander, Medical Directors, Aides- 
de-Camp, Assistant Adjutant-General to the Commander-in-Chief, Assistant Inspec- 
tors-General, and Post Commanders, silver eagle. 

For Senior Vice Post Commanders, Assistant Inspectors-General, and Aides- 
de-Camp to Department Commanders, silver leaf. 

For Junior Vice Post Commanders, Assistant Inspectors, Post Surgeons, and 
Post Adjutants, gilt leaf. 

For members of Council of Administration, silver letter " C." 

For Chaplain-in-Chief, silver star and cross. 

For Department Chaplain, large silver cross. 

For Post Chaplains, small silver cross. 

For Post Ofificer of the Day, two gilt bars. 

For Post Quartermaster, one gilt bar. 

Officers of the Guard, vacant field. 

The report of the Committee on Rules, Regulations, and 
Ritual recommended the form of " Burial Service " which was 
offered by the Department of Massachusetts, and the Encamp- 
ment adopted the report. 



Burial Service 

Commander takes position at head of cofifin. 

Chaplain takes position at foot of cofifin. 

Officers and Past Commanders in rear of Commander. 

Post in rear of Chaplain. 

Colors to front. 

Commander. — Assembled to pay our last tribute of respect to this dead soldier 

[or sailor] of our Republic, let us unite in prayer. The Chaplain will invoke 

the Divine blessing. 
Prayer by Chaplain. — God of battles ! Father of all ! amid these monuments of 

the dead we seek Thee with whom there is no death. Open every eye to 

66 



Department ot" New York, G. A. U. 

behold Him who changed the night of death into morning. In the (lei)ths of 
our hearts we would hear the celestial word, " I am the Resurrection and the 
Life ; he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall live." As Com- 
rade after Comrade departs, and we march on with ranks broken, help us to 
be faithful unto Thee and to each other. We beseech Thee, look in mercy on 
the widows and children of deceased Comrades, and with Thine own tenderness 
console and comfort those bereaved by this event which calls us here. Give 
them " the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the sjjirit of 
heaviness." Heavenly Father ! bless and save our country with the freedom 
and peace of righteousness, and through Thy great mercy, a Saviour's grace, 
and Thy Holy Spirit's favor, may we all meet at last in joy before Thy throne 
in heaven. And to Thy great name shall be praise for ever and ever. 

All Comrades. — Amen ! 

[If a choir be present, an appropriate hymn will now be sung.] 

[The Commander may then speak as follows, or, if he elects, extemporize :] 

CojMMander. — One by one, as the years roll on, we are called together to fulfil these 
last sad duties of respect to our Comrades of the war. The present, full of 
the cares and pleasures of civil life, fades away, and we look back to the time 
when, shoulder to shoulder on bloody battle-fields, or around the guns of our 
men-of-war, we fought for our dear old flag. We may indulge the hope 
that the spirit with which, on land and sea, hardship, privation, dangers, were 
encountered by our dead heroes — a spirit uncomplaining, nobly, manfully 
obedient to the behest of duty, whereby to-day our homes are secure, and our 
loved ones rest in peace under the sgis of the flag, will prove a glorious 
incentive to the youth who, in the ages to come, may be called to uphold the 
destinies of our country. As the years roll on, we, too, shall have fought our 
battles through, and be laid to rest, our souls following the long column to the 
realms above, as grim death, hour by hour, shall mark its victim. Let us so 
live that when that time shall come, those we leave behind may say above our 
graves, " Here lies the body of a true-hearted, brave, and earnest defender of 
the Republic." 

First Comrade {/avinga wrcatJi of Ci'ergreeu or floiuers upon the coffin). — In behalf 
of the Post, I give this tribute, a symbol of an undying love for Comrades of 
the war. 

Second Comrade {laying a rose or flozucr upon the coffin). — Symbol of purity, we 
offer at this lowly grave a rose. May future generations emulate the unselfish 
devotion of even the lowliest of our heroes. 

Third Comrade {laying a laurel leaf upon the coffin). — Last token of afiiection from 
Comrades-in-arms, we crown these remains with a symbol of victory. 

Chaplain's Address. — The march of another Comrade is over, and he lies down 
after it in the house appointed for all the living. Thus summoned, this open 
grave reminds us of the frailty of human life and the tenure by which we hold 
our own. " In such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh." 

It seems well we should leave our Comrade to rest where over him will 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

bend the arching sky, as it did in great love when he pitched his tent, or lay 
down, weary and footsore, by the way or on the battle-field, for an hour's sleep. 
[As we leave our Comrade to rest, no longer to hear the sound of the waves, or 
to float upon the bosom of the deep ; no longer to sail beneath peaceful skies, 
or to be driven before the angry storm ; may he find welcome in that land where 
there is no more sea.*] As he was then, so he is still — in the hands of the 
Heavenly Father. " God giveth His beloved sleep." 

As we lay our Comrade down to rest, let us cherish his virtues and learn to 
imitate them. Reminded forcibly, by the vacant place so lately filled by him, 
that our ranks are thinning, let each one be so loyal to every virtue, so true to 
everv friendship, so faithful in our remaining marches, that we shall be ready to 
fall out to take our places at the great review hereafter, not with doubt, but in 
faith that the merciful Captain of our salvation will call us to that fraternity 
which, on earth and in heaven, remains unbroken. {A pause for a moment.) 
Jesus' saith, " Thy brother shall rise again. I am the Resurrection and the 
Life." ( Tlie hoJv is deposited in tiie grave or toml>.) Behold, the silver cord 
is loosed, the golden bowl is broken : we commit the body to the grave, where 
dust shall return to the earth, and the spirit to Cod who gave it. Earth to 
earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, looking for the resurrection and the life to 
come through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
Pr.'Wer. 

Charles Devens, Jr., of Massachusetts, was elected Com- 
mander-in-Chief, 

187+ 

The eighth annual National Encampment was held May 13, 
1874, at Harrisburg, Pa., at which fifteen Departments were 
represented by fifty-one Department Officers and Delegates. 

The Adjutant-General reported a serious loss to the Organ- 
ization in the destruction of books and records by fire on Me- 
morial Day, May 30, 1873, ^^'^^ ^^'^^^ the gain to the Order had 
been 9,004, while the loss had been 9,465 — a net loss in mem- 
bership of 461. The Quartermaster-General reported receipts 
for the year $6,736.22 ; expenditures, $3,514.70; leaving a bal- 
ance in cash on hand, $3,221,52, with net assets over liabilities 
of $4,117.45. 

A committee for the purpose recommended the following as 
a badge for Past Officers, which was unanimously adopted : 

* To be used if the deceased Comrade had been a sailor. 
6S 




i^^^. 



IFTH COMMAXDER-IX-CHIEF DIED JANUARY /. 1 89 1 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

Past Officers in the Grand Army of the RepubHc may wear the strap of the 
official badge proper for the highest position held by them in the Grand Army, with 
a clasp upon the ribbon proper for such position, beneath the bronze eagle of the 
membership badge, to which the whole shall be pendent. 

The most noteworthy amendments to the Rules and Regula- 
tions adopted by this Encampment were : 

First. That Posts would be permitted to dispense with a part of their ojDening 
exercises. 

Second. That Past Department Commanders, as long as they remained in good 
standing in their Posts, should be members of the National Encampment, 

Third. That Departments might adopt a uniform for their own members, and, 
should no uniform be adopted. Posts might adopt one to their taste. 

Resolutions were adopted, urging Congress to increase pen- 
sions for wounded and disabled soldiers and sailors, especially 
to those disabled ; also to provide compensation for ex-army 
nurses who had served in the field during the Civil War. 

These resolutions had no effect on Congress, however, 
though they had been presented and urged by the Commander- 
in-Chief. 

In General Orders, No. 4, a committee was appointed to 
draft a Memorial Service for the use of Posts, as a tribute 
to their deceased Comrades, which was duly prepared, and in 
General Orders, No. 7, was approved. 

" //<- that loseth his life for My sake shall find it." 

A Memorial Service to be Used in the Posts of the Grand Army 
of the Republic in Grateful and Devout Commemoration of 
Deceased Comrades 

/IDemorial Servnce 

[The Post will open without ceremony, the officers in uniform, and sentinels 
properly stationed ; the friends and relatives of the deceased, present by invitation, 
seated in the body of the hall. The altar will be covered with the national flag, 
draped black and white, and ornamented with flowers ; a chair (or chairs, according 
to the number of deceased Comrades), suitably draped, will be placed between the 
Post Commander's chair and the altar. The person appointed to deliver the ad- 
dress will be seated on the right of the Commander. A Comrade will be detailed as 
drummer. 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

The exercises will begin with a voluntary or chant, and proceed as follows :] 
Post Commander. — Adjutant, for what purpose is this meeting called? 
Adjutant. — To pay our tribute of respect to the memory of our late Comrade [or 

Comrades] . 

Post Commander. — Have you a record of his [their] service in the cause of our 

country, and in the Grand Army of the Republic ? 
Adjutant. — Commander, I have. 
Commander. — You will read it. 
Adjutant. was born j ^^^ in town of , State of ; enlisted 

in Co. Regiment Volunteers, on the day of 1S6 ; 

held the office [or ofifices] of , and was discharged , 186 . 

He joined Post, No. , Department of ; held the office 

[or offices] of , and died , aged years. 

[The drummer will beat three rolls upon a muffled drum immediately after the 
reading of each record. ] 
Commander. — The record is an honorable one, and as the memory of all faithful 

soldiers of the Republic should be cherished and their record preserved, I 

direct that it be placed in the archives of the Post for future reference. 
Chaplain. — AVhat man is he that liveth and shall not see death? Shall he deliver 

his soul from the hand of the grave? If a man die, shall he live again? 
Comrades. — Jesus Christ said, I am the Resurrection and the Life. He that 

believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And he that liveth 

and believeth in Me shall never die. 
Chaplain. — Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in (Jod ; believe also in Me. 

In My father's house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. 
Comrades. — Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. Yea, saith the Spirit, that 

they may rest from their labors. 
Chaplain. — They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more. 
Comrades. — Neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 
Chaplain. — For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them and 

lead them unto living fountains of water. 
Comr.4DES. — And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. 
Chaplain. — There shall be. no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying; neither 

shall there be any more pain. 
CoMR^^DES. — For the former things have passed away. 

[Then shall follow a hymn or chant by the choir. The Comrades shall then 
form a square, enclosing the altar, the officers in front, the Chaplain at the altar.] 
Prayer. — By the Chaplain, closing with the Lord's Prayer in concert. 
Chant. — By the choir. 

[The Comrades will return to their places.] 
Reading of Scriptures. 
Hymn. 
Address. 
Doxology. 

72 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

[After which the Post shall be closed as follows :] 

Commander. — Senior Vice-Commander, how should all men live? 

Senior Vice-Commander. — With trust in Cod, and in love for one another. 

Commander. — junior Mce-Commander, how should Comrades of the (irand Army 
live? 

Junior Vice-Commander. — Having on the whole armor of Cod, that they may be 
able to withstand in the evil day. 

Commander. — The last enemv that shall l)e destroyed is death. 

Comrades. — We thank Cod, who gave us the victory, through Jesus Christ, our 
Lord. 

C(^MMANDER. — May the Almighty Cod, our Heavenly Father, keep us by His gracious 
presence amid the conflicts of our mortal life, and at last receive us into ever- 
lasting peace. 

Comrades. — Amen . 

Commander. — I now declare this Post closed. 

At the close of this Encampment Charles Devens, Jr., was 
reelected Commander-in-Chief. 



1875 

The ninth annual National Encampment was held in Chicago, 
May 12, 1875. There were fourteen Departments, represented 
by seventy-eight Representatives. 

Under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief Devens the 
Order had advanced considerably in comparison with former 
years. The gain in membership had been 9,094, and the loss 
8,306, leaving a net gain of 78S members. 

The receipts by the Quartermaster-General w^ere $947.88 in 
excess of the expenditures, and the assets at the close of the 
year, in cash and supplies, were $4,913.17. 

The total amount expended for relief, as reported by the 
several Departments, w^as about $75,000. 

The progress of the Order for nearly ten years had been 
surprisingly slow in comparison with the objects it aimed to 
achieve. This can only be accounted for by reason of its true 
purposes being misunderstood or imperfectly comprehended. 
There was a general feeling throughout the land that because 
of the secret feature there might be an underlying principle of 

73 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

danger. A large organization with secret manipulation and 
hidden motives was considered uncertain ; possibly mischievous. 
The annual address before the National Encampment, de- 
livered by Commander-in-Chief Devens, was a relief to many 
unbelievers, and aided greatly in gaining the confidence of 
many veterans who were still standing aloof, unwilling to be 
counted in the membership, and it enlightened the public as well. 

Address of the Commander-in-Chief 

In some of its forms, and in the modes in which it enables its members to 
recognize each other, the Grand Army of the Republic is a secret organization. But 
secrecy is limited to these; in all its real purposes and objects it has no conceal- 
ments or reservations, nothing it is not ready to spread before the world fully and 
frankly. It seeks no objects that are not sought by every true man who endeavored, 
whether in the field or out, to do what he could for the preservation of the Union 
so lately imperilled, and who is ready now to honor and cherish those by whose 
efforts it was saved. 

It has no system of politics in which all cannot unite, whatever other differ- 
ences they may have as to men or measures, who agree that what was done to 
maintain the Government was demanded by the highest considerations of patriotism 
and duty. Did it have any political objects in a narrow or individual sense ; was it 
intended to elevate this man or party to power and place, or to prevent another 
from obtaining it, a proper and deep distrust would and ought to prevail in reference 
to it. No body of citizens, even if they have been soldiers, can be allowed to 
separate themselves in their political relations from the great body of their fellow- 
citizens, and form a distinct class, without just ground of objection and complaint. 
Nor is it our desire to keep alive any ill feeling which has been engendered during 
the War of the Rebellion, The object of every war that can be justifiably waged 
is that thereby peace may be secured ; and those who forced upon us, by insulting 
our flag, by attacking our army, by battering down our fortresses, this strange and 
unnatural conflict were our countrymen. 

Let the necessary and logical results of our triumph be preserved inviolate, alike 
in the union of these States, and in liberty to every man who treads their soil, and 
the passions and bitterness of the conflict should be allowed to die. But we cannot 
and we ought not to allow the memory of those by whom these results have been 
achieved to sink into oblivion ; justice to their cause, gratitude for their services, 
demand that we at least should claim for them the place to which they are right- 
fully entitled among the heroes and martyrs of liberty. 

In two instances, that of the suffering by the fire at Oshkosh, Wis., during the 
last summer, and that of the suffering occasioned by the locust plague in Minnesota, 
I have thought proper, by circular, to call the attention of the Order to the con- 
dition of Comrades in those Departments. 

74 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

The recommendations of the last National Encampment in reference to the 
passage of the bills for increase of pensions, and for certain com])ensation to female 
nurses, were forwarded, immediately after the adjournment, to Congress, and were 
by me, from time to time, enforced by conversations and correspondence ; but I 
regret that I cannot report any favorable result. 

Even if there should be no general increase of pensions, I am clearly of opinion 
that there should be an increase to those who suffered the loss of a leg or arm, and 
that it is our duty to respectfully urge this upon the attention of the National Legis- 
lature. 

The carefully prepared report of the Surgeon-Ceneral will afford you many inter- 
esting facts as to the number and kind of disabilities existing among our numbers. 

In conclusion, Comrades, as the duties which you have for the past two years 
imposed upon me draw to a close, you will do me, I know, the justice to think that 
I have done my utmost for the furtherance of the objects which we all have at 
heart. I am fully rewarded by the belief, which a careful examination and com- 
parison will justify, that the condition of the Organization has improved both 
numerically and financially during the past two years, and that its spirit and 
patriotism have not diminished. The relations which I have held towards you have 
been most agreeable ; you have always generously sustained me ; and if there is 
regret that the time has now arrived when we must sever them, I recognize that, as 
I take my place again as a Comrade in the ranks of the Order, they will not be less 
pleasant and satisfactory in that changed position. 

There were many propositions to change the Rules and Regu- 
lations, but some were wisely discountenanced and defeated, to 

wit : 

That when Memorial Day occurs on Sunday, that day should be observed. 

To require the election of all Department Officers except the Assistant Adju- 
tant-General. 

That Commanders-in-Chief and Vice-Commanders-in-Chief shall not be eligible 
to reelection. 

That Past Department Commanders and appointed officers should not be 
entitled to vote as such in Department Encampments. 

To constitute Past Post Commanders members of Department Encampments. 

John F. Hartranft, of Pennsylvania, was elected Commander- 
in-Chief. 



75 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 



1876 

The tenth annual National Encampment was held at Phila- 
delphia, Pa., June 30, 1876. 

Encouraged by the growth of the previous year, and in- 
spirited further by the election of General Hartranft to be 
Commander-in-Chief, who was so prominently and favorably 
recognized as an efficient leader, the attendance at the Encamp- 
ment at this time was marked by a still further increase in 
numbers. Twenty-two Departments were represented, a gain 
of more than fifty per cent, over the preceding year, and the 
total number of Representatives present was an even hundred, 
or twenty-five per cent, more than the year before. 

This occasion was marked by an enthusiasm not hitherto 
approached, and was the beginning of the festival occasions, 
which grew from year to year until they became the most noted 
public gatherings and demonstrations of the American con- 
tinent. 

Post No. 2, of Philadelphia, at this time was the most cele- 
brated Post in the Order. Its hall or headquarters was renowned 
for its collection of war relics and curiosities, and the ceremonies 
of the Grand Army were performed with particular exactitude 
and military display. 

The National Encampment of this year was held within the 
beautiful home of this Post, whose rooms were handsomely 
decorated and tastefully arranged for the occasion. 

The evening before the opening of the Encampment was 
occupied by the Representatives and National Officers in an 
attendance upon the meeting of Post 2, to observe the muster-in 
ceremonies, which was a revelation to nearly all the witnesses, 

After the business of the Encampment was closed the fes- 
tivities were continued. On the morning of July ist a delight- 
ful drive from Headquarters to Fairmount Park brought the 
members of the National Encampment to Belmont Mansion, 
where a superb breakfast was served in the latest style, at which 
the Commander-in-Chief presided and welcomed to the patriotic 

76 




SIXTH COMMAXDER-IX-CHIEF DIED OCTOBER I 7, 1889 



Dt'partiiient of New York, G. A. K. 

city the Representatives of the saviors of the Nation. Toasts 
were given and responded to, and the reading of poems and 
recitations were in the order of exercises. 

On July 3d the Grand Army paraded. Nearl\' all the; Posts 
of Pennsylvania were represented; Massachusetts was in evi- 
dence with three of her largest Posts ; and New York was 
present, with Department Commander James Tanner in com- 
mand, escorted by Koltes Post, No. 32, of New York Cit}'. 
July 5th was devoted to a reunion at Schuetzen Park, when eight 
to ten thousand persons were present. This closed the festivities 
of the most enjoyable and notable National Encampment that 
had taken place since the beginning of the annual assemblies. 

The address of General Hartranft is notable for its sim- 
plicity and earnestness. 

Address of Commander-in-Chief John F. Hartranft 

As the Representatives of the Grand Army of the Republic, you have assembled 
here to-day in accordance with an annual custom, to deliberate and take counsel 
with each other upon all matters of interest to our loved Order which demand 
attention. The tender twig which for years past required so much nourishment and 
care, and which so often bent to the storms of prejudice and adverse criticism, 
has stretched its roots so widely and deeply, and has become so firm and strong, 
that it no longer needs that ceaseless watchfulness exercised by former Commanders 
to protect it from public opinion without or weakness from within. The wisdom of 
the Comrades composing the National Encampments in the past has destroyed the 
growth of all disturbing elements which would have retarded the development or 
drawn their sustenance from the life or prosperity of our Order; and, thanks to 
their foresight, our Organization is no longer subject to the suspicion that we are 
united for selfish or party purposes, and we are free to perform the sacred duties 
our companionship imposes upon us, without stopping to battle with misconception 
and falsehood. 

Surely the fraternity of those who stood side by side in the many bloody con- 
flicts of the late war is a natural tie that needs not be cemented with any binding 
obhgation ; and is it strange that from this feeling of fraternity there should spring a 
sentiment of charity for the sufferings of those who had passed through the fearful 
ordeal of war, or had left impoverished and helpless families behind them? And is it 
not logical, if we cherish a recollection of that war, and nourish a feeling of kind- 
ness for those whom its casualties have, in part or in whole, deprived of support, 
that we should nurse with a ferment and holy regard the spirit of patriotism or loyalty 
that prompted us to incur all the terrible chances of battle to save the integrity of 
the Union and preserve the flag of our choice ? 

79 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

These three simple principles are the articles of our Grand Army creed — the 
cultivation of a habit of fraternity among Comrades, the exercise of a daily charity 
to the maimed and helpless, and the constant renewal of our allegiance to the 
Government for which we perilled so much ; and they meanly asperse us who impute 
other than these motives to our actions as Grand Army Comrades. 

Despite the hard times and the general prostration of business and industry, the 
prosperity of the Order has been marked and encouraging, and the steady increase in 
our numbers gives promise of large accessions to our ranks so soon as the distrust 
that now pervades all classes of our people is destroyed, and money is released once 
more for legitimate enterprise. Our growth has not only been in numbers, but in 
Posts and Departments ; and we may congratulate ourselves that our Organization is 
extending its benefits and usefulness into every comer of the land. 

When you visit the great Exposition of art and industry now open in this city, 
you will be gratified to see the substantial contributions made by our Nation to the 
comfort, luxury, and progress of humanity ; and, as you witness this exhibition, I feel 
assured you will experience no greater pleasure than in the thought that, through 
your efforts in part, our great Nation was preserved in its integrity for a future of 
usefulness, honor, and glory, and with the natural and just pride that comes of this 
thought, let there go apace a resolution to do your share towards effecting a true 
reconciliation between the sections of our common country, and to advance every 
efTort that will unite with you our late foes in promoting the prosperity of our 
country and enlarging the scope and purpose of our free institutions. 

At this Encampment attention was called to the fact that the 
badges of the Order had not been made according to the pro- 
visions of the Rules and Regulations, and a temporary arrange- 
ment had been made with the United States Mint for their 
manufacture. The Committee on Officers' Reports recom- 
mended : 

That the entire matter of badges be referred to a special committee of five, to 
be appointed by the new Commander-in-Chief, with full powers to make the best 
possible contract, with sufficient guarantee for the manufacture of badges of the 
present form, size, and design, to be made, as now required, of bronze cannon 
captured during the Rebellion. 

General Hartranft was reelected Commander-in-Chief, 



1877 

The eleventh annual National Encampment was held at 
Providence, R. I., June 26, 1877. 

Only twelve Departments were represented at this Encamp- 

80 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

ment, instead of twenty-two on the previous occasion, though 
the number of Representatives present was ninety-six — about 
equal to the last representation in numbers. 

The growth of membership was small indeed — only an in- 
crease of 125. 

Commander-in-Chief Hartranft, in his address, said : 

At the close of another year we meet to review the past and take counsel for 
the future. An organization which draws its members from one generation must 
soon pass aw^ay. The graves we decorated this year were more than we decorated 
before, but the living have closed the gaps in our ranks, and the (Irand Army still 
presents an unbroken front to its silent foe. Under that enemy's fire our line will 
melt away, and our reserves must, in time, be exhausted. But that time has not 
yet come; the muster-roll is still full. Rising from the mists of battle, the sun of 
the Order still climbs to the zenith, and its splendor is undiminished. The clouds 
of doubt and distrust have been dispelled, and many who hesitated to join us, from 
suspicion of our motives, or fears of being misunderstood, now swell the ranks of 
good fellowship, and find delight in the revival of old associations, and comfort in 
the companionship and support of old Comrades. 

One fact established by the war is inspiriting to every lover of free institutions. 
It proved that our Nation could rel\- upon the patriotism and gallantry of its people, 
it solved the problem of a strong free government, abolished standing armies 
except as a police, and returned to the old days of a nation in arms without falling 
into anarchy on the one hand, or despotism on the other. 

It was also taken for granted that the discipline of the camp unfitted the indi- 
vidual for peaceful life. If arms were our profession, there might be some ground 
for such a belief. But war was an incident of our careers ; we were soldiers as part 
of our duty as citizens. I do not think a man is a worse citizen for having been a 
good soldier. On the contrary, I think he is the better for it. The promptness 
with which our people took up arms, their courage and fidehty in the field, the ease 
and safety with which they were disbanded, and the alacrity with which they re- 
sumed their civil inirsuits have often been referred to v.-ith surprise and admiration. 
But there is another fact not the less admirable and surprising. The soldiers of the 
South, who know the cost of disloyalty and the futility of their ])rinciples, have also 
been the better citizens of that section. They have gone to work with accustomed 
energy and fidelity, having learned to res])ect the convictions of others and patiently 
to submit to the will of the majority. On the other hand, the most pestilent classes 
of the South have been the non-combatants. The men of war promjitly moulded 
their swords into pruning hooks, and their spears into ploughshares ; but the pro- 
fessed men of peace fanned the embers of hate and have labored to keep alive the pas- 
sions and prejudices of the past. It is evident that the olive branch in the South has 
been twined round the swords that were surrendered at Appomattox and Greensboro. 
What this generation fought for and secured may be gradually lost by the negli- 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

gence, self-interest, and the indifference of succeeding generations. Another gen- 
eration may have to fight over the same ground and for the same objects ; but all 
will not be lost. They will win the easier because it has been once won. 

Nevertheless, Comrades, though this war was fought upon so plain an issue, it 
was fought in faith, in hope, and in charity. We entered the contest with a loyal 
faith in the principles and institutions established by our fathers ; we fought for four 
years, animated and sustained by the hopes of victory, and we laid down the sword 
in the hour of triumph " with malice toward none and charity for all." Upon that 
platform we still stand, loyal to our Nation, hopeful of its future, and charitable to 
its foes. On the latter we would impose no restrictions which freemen ought not 
to endure, or ask any submission which freemen ought not to give ; we simply ask 
that they give up the pistol and the lash, concede free speech, a free press, and free 
votes, and submit to the decision of the ballot. More than these we do not ask, 
and the contest will go on, in peace or war, until they are secured of all men. 

Our Organization, then, is founded upon loyalty to the country. Beyond that 
it has no political significance. Beyond that it is an association of men who have 
participated in the same victories and defeats, who have the same convictions and 
hopes, common memories, and mutual sympathies. It is intended to perpetuate old 
friendships, to revive old memories, and for the mutual support and assistance of 
old Comrades. 

The address of Chaplain-in-Chief Rev. Joseph F. Lovering 
was a pattern of eloquence. He said in part : 

So far as the faith and morals of the Grand Army of the Republic are con- 
cerned, I have this to say : 

Its faith has its religion, and its religion has the devout obedience of every 
worthy member of our Order. I do not refer to any religion, sectarian or universal, 
liberal or conservative. Christian or pagan, as such. Whatever disputes there may 
be outside of our Organization concerning them do not afifect us. Religion means 
"bond." The highest religion casts out all spirit of fear and makes its "bond" 
that of love. Our religion, within the terms of our Organization, claims that high- 
est bond. It is permeated, it is saturated, with the spirit of that love. That love 
is love of country. That religion is the spirit of patriotism. Its altars are the graves 
of the unforgotten and heroic. Its symbol is the flag of our Union. Its priests 
are all those within its organization who confess to this soldierly creed : 

I believe in a fraternity which joins in indissoluble union, justice and right. 

I believe in a charity that, while merciful to a conquered foe, does not stultify 
itself by surrendering the fruits of victory ; that never forgets the brightness of that 
cause which has been made illustrious by the heroic sacrifices of those whose graves 
should be the shrines of the Nation's reverence. 

I believe in loyalty that acknowledges one country and one flag ; that makes 
American citizenship honorable everywhere ; that calls rebellion a crime, and the 
penalty of treason, death. 

82 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

I believe that, in fraternity and charity, we should stand shoulder to shoulder, 
willing, at all hazard of favor or fame, to defend the Grand Army of the Republic 
as the standard bearer of the nation's loyalty. 

As lean commend the faith of the Grand Army of the Rei)ul)lic, so I can respect 
its morals. The highest expression of morals is virtue, and the original significance 
of virtue is manliness. As I come in contact with those now living, who make our 
Order so honorable ; as I recall those now dead, whose memories are resplendent 
with glory, there can be no question in my mind as to the manliness which belongs 
to the Grand Army of the Republic. 

It is a manliness inherited from those who have recruited the Grand Army of 
the Immortals ; it is a manliness which to-day beats in hearts which have known no 
throb but that of courage, which looks out from eyes that have been unscarred by 
any wrath of war, that can be read upon the flesh in letters made by shot, or shell, 
or sabre stroke — scars that are the insignia of valor — a manliness that gives, to every 
man of our membership, however humble, permission to wear upon his breast the 
badge of the Grand Army of the Republic. 

During this Encampment it was remembered that General 
Grant would dine with Queen Victoria, and a cablegram was 
despatched to him, to which he replied : 

Gener-^l Hartr-anft, 

Commander G. A. R. 
Conveyed your message to the Queen. Thank my old Comrades. 

Grant. 

This Encampment was not noted for any particular line of 
business, though in its fraternal sense it was successful and 
enjoyable. 

The Commander-in-Chief was escorted to Providence by the 
two noted Posts of Philadelphia, 2 and 5, and was received in 
New York by Department Commander James Tanner and Posts 
of that city. 

The Encampment was held in the Light Infantry Armory 
at Providence, where it had been welcomed by Mayor Doyle 
and other municipal officers, who afterward entertained the 
Representatives on board the steamer " Rhode Island "with a 
bountiful collation during a sail of several hours on the river 
and bay. 

One of the pleasant days which will never be forgotten by 
those present at this Encampnient was occupied with a clam- 

83 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

bake at Rocky Point, which was partaken of by at least 20,000 
people. President Hayes and members of his Cabinet were 
special guests, with the officers and delegates of the Grand 
Army. Prescott Post, No. i, entertained with a mammoth and 
successful Campfire, during which General Hartranft received 
from Post 2, of Philadelphia, a handsome souvenir of the occa- 
sion, and Prescott Post received from Post 2 a beautiful ballot- 
box in the form of a miniature cannon. 

The city of Providence on one of the days gave the visitors 
to the Encampment a banquet at which notable persons were 
present from many States, among whom was Bayard Taylor 
and the Rev. J. F. Behrends, of Brooklyn, N. Y. 

A feature of this Encampment seems odd in the present 
day, in the light of the improved nature of holding Post En- 
campments. A night session was held, the main purpose of 
which was to exemplify the unwritten and ritual work of the 
Order. The ceremonies were conducted by the officers and 
members of the then most famous Post 2, of Philadelphia. 

At the election, John C. Robinson, of New York, was elected 
Commander-in-Chief. 

1878 

The twelfth annual session of the National Encampment 
met in Springfield, Mass., June 4, 1878. There were fourteen 
Departments represented, and eighty-five Officers and Delegates. 

Commander-in-Chief Robinson, in his address, said : 

The annual reports show that the Order is in as healthy and flourishing a condi- 
tion as can reasonably be expected. While in some sections of the country Comrades 
have been inactive and wanting in energy, and there has been a falling off, in others 
there has been renewed life and spirit, a disposition to labor earnestly in the cause, 
followed naturally by an increase of membership and a determination to make the 
Grand Army, as it should be, a power in the land, by enrolling in its ranks every 
worthy, honorably discharged soldier and sailor who served in the Army and Navy of 
the United States during the war for the preservation of the Union. 

At no time since its organization has the Grand Army of the Republic occupied 
so high and proud a position as to-day. The charge, so long and persistently made, 
of its being a political organization is no longer heard. We have outlived prejudice 

S4 




;VEXTH COMMAXDER-IX-CHIEF DIED FEBRUARY 1 8, 1 897 



Deparrmt-nt of New York, G. A. R. 

and overcome opposition. People have seen our good works and liecome satisfied 
that we are connected with no jxirty or sect ; that we are what we ])rofess to be, a 
fraternal, charitable, and loyal association ; that among the men who have faced a 
common danger, toiled together on the long and weary march, drank from the same 
canteen, bivouacked under the same blanket, stood shoulder to shoulder in the shock 
of battle, there exists a fraternal feeling that can be found nowhere else ; that our 
charity is not confined, but extends to all our former companions in arms, and to all 
widows and orphans of those who wore the blue ; that our loyalty consists in a deter- 
mination to preserve the Union of the States, and to uphold the flag of our country 
as the emblem of universal liberty, equal rights, and justice to all men. 

During the present session of Congress a bill has l)een introduced, providing 
that all the pensions on account of death or disability from service in the Union 
Army, that have been or may hereafter be granted, shall begin with the death or dis- 
charge of the soldier. Struck with the justness of this measure, I immediately 
brought it to the attention of Department Commanders, hoping that action by the 
several Department Encampments might have an important bearing on its success. 
Great injustice has been done to our disabled Comrades, and to the widows and 
orphans (who are our wards), by the great delay in granting pensions to those who 
are by law justly entitled to them. Applications have laid, perhaps years, before 
being acted upon ; and then, when reached, it has frequently happened that they have 
been sent back for the correction of some error or informality, and have had to go 
to the bottom of the list, waiting again for months or years before being reached and 
acted upon. The objections raised against this measure are that it grants pensions 
for years when they have not been asked for, and that it would necessitate the pay- 
ment of millions out of the treasury. During the War of the Rebellion it was said the 
country could never reward its soldiers sufficiently. Now, when soldiers are no 
longer needed, our crippled and disabled Comrades, the widow and the orphan, are 
to be refused necessary relief because of the expense ; as though the services of the 
men who saved the Union could be requited by a few millions of dollars. 

Stirring events within the last twelve months have brought the Grand Amiy into 
greater prominence than ever, proving that our Organization is as ready and willing 
now to take up arms in the cause of law and order as it was to crush treason and 
rebellion in the past. A seeming conflict between capital and labor was taken ad- 
vantage of by a lawless and turbulent element, incited, by the hope of plunder, to 
the commission of arson and murder. Many lives were sacrificed and millions of 
property were destroyed. State authorities were unable to restore order, and the aid 
of the general Government was invoked. At the commencement of the difificulty I 
telegraphed to the President of the United States, " The Grand Army of the Re- 
public, an organization composed exclusively of veteran soldiers and sailors, can, if 
necessary, furnish thousands of volunteers for the restoration and preservation of 
order." At the same time some of our Posts offered their service to the State au- 
thorities, which in a few cases were accepted. The knowledge that a strong organ- 
ization of tried veteran soldiers stood ready to resume their arms to enforce obedience 
to the laws did much to restore order and insure quiet to the disturbed districts. 

87 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

While this Organization, true to its principles, will advocate justice and equal rights, 
it will discountenance every attempt at anarchy or insurrection. 

Our Order is now firmly established upon the best and surest foundations. It 
has secured the respect and good will of all. Let us continue to merit the good 
opinion of mankind by pursuing closely the path we have marked out, laboring 
earnestly for the extension and perpetuation of our Order, by keeping fresh and 
green the fraternal feeling that binds us together as soldiers and sailors of the Re- 
public, by disinterested and liberal charity, and that loyalty to the Union, born of 
pure and lofty patriotism. 

The report of the Adjutant-General showed a net gain during 
the year of 216 members. The larger Departments (excepting 
Pennsylvania) had fallen off in membership, but many of the 
smaller ones had gained. Pennsylvania had held her own 
strength, and was far ahead the most prominent Department in 
the Order, as was illustrated by the parade to celebrate the 
eleventh anniversary of that Department, when three thousand 
Comrades in uniform were reviewed by the Commander-in-Chief 
of the Grand Army of the Republic, Governor Hartranft, and 
General McClellan. 

At this Encampment Chaplain-in-Chief Lovering made 
another of his forceful and unique addresses, suggesting a new 
Litany. 

Address of Chaplain-in-Chief 

A more cordial and vigorous support of our Crrand Army journals. Not a 
single number of any paper published in the interests of our Fraternity can be read 
without a keen sense of its deserts and of the justice with which every claim is made 
for generous assistance. 

More enthusiastic activity in recruiting our ranks. In certain sections of our 
country, for instance, whose fame for loyalty is more than national, among whose 
hosts promoted to immortality is the name of Thomas, and among whose captains 
immortal by brevet, whose full commission awaits their acceptance, is the illustrious 
name of Grant, our present membership by no means adequately represents — in 
numbers — the veterans of our Civil ^^'ar. It seems eminently fitting that an effort 
should be made to recruit our ranks and awaken such an interest in the Grand Army 
of the Republic that it shall be a matter of serious question when any soldier claim- 
ing to have earned a good record confesses his name is not on our Roster. 

All this naturally, inevitably results from the enshrined memories, soldierly 
worth, and active loyalty belonging to the Grand Army. Our present and our future 
are indissolubly united with the past. The names of those who fill our ranks to-day, 
however illustrious, fade before the renown of those who have been promoted. Their 



De{xirtment of New York, G. A. K. 

deeds are our best sources of inspiration to wakeful vigilance and untarnished honor. 
Their graves are the altars of our patriotism, and as we look upon them or gather about 
them, we may, as if we repeated a church Utany, in serious and humble reverence say : 

From all ingratitude to the heroic sacrifice of the past— good Lord, dehver us. 

From all forgetfulness of that brave and loyal manhood by which the Union was 
preserved, and the Constitution of the United States vindicated — good T,ord, deliver us. 

From any lack of zeal, from any hesitation of purpose, from any timidity of faith 
in a final victory of a stalwart and valorous patriotism over the sjfirit of treacherous 
compromise and sentimental concession, which are but other names for treason, 
privy conspiracy, and national wrong — good Lord, deliver us. 

While to such litany let there be added these questions and responses : On what 
rests the hope of the Republic? One country and one flag. How may that country 
be preserved and that flag be kept unsullied? P]y eternal vigilance, which is the 
price of liberty. 

One country ! One flag ! Eternal vigilance the price of liberty ! These are 
the great commandments of the Grand Army of the Republic. These unite to form 
the supreme law of a self-sacrificing and heroic patriotism. 

God of the Nation ! As in the past Thou didst grant to the Grand Army of Im- 
mortals obedience unto death, so unto us of the Grand Army of the Republic, in 
whatever need, in peace or war, for Thy cause, which is our country's, incline our 
hearts to keep this law. 

The principal business of this Encampment was the adoption 
of the report of the Committee on Rules and Regulations and 
Ritual, recommending the preparation of a Ritual for the use of 
officers of Posts ; to permit Departments, by a two-thirds vote, 
to constitute Past Post Commanders as members of such De- 
partment Encampments * ; and that flags displayed or Memorial 
Day be at half-mast. 

A resolution was adopted to appoint a committee to lay be- 
fore the President of the United States a complaint relative to 
the refusal of the Superintendent of the United States Building 
in Albany, N. Y., to recognize the claims of veterans for pref- 
erence in employment, and deprecating the tendency to depart 
from the proper observance of Memorial Day, and calling on 
members of the Order and all good citizens to discourage, by 
all the means in their power, any desecration of the day. 

Commander-in-Chief John C. Robinson was reelected to 
that office. 

* The Department of New York has never adopted the rule admitting- Past Post Com- 
manders as members of the Department Encampment. 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

On the evening of June 4th, Post 2, of Philadelphia, again 
exemplified the secret work of the Order before the members of 
the Encampment and visiting Comrades. The hall was filled to 
overflowing, and the work was illustrated in a manner to call 
forth the unbounded praise of all. 

The same evening all Comrades present at the Encampment 
were entertained by the Springfield Club at their home in a 
style of Oriental magnificence. The house and grounds were 
filled with visitors to tne number of a thousand at least, while 
five thousand or more people gathered about the enclosure. 
Colored lanterns and reflecting lights threw a beauty of bright- 
ness over the decorations of flags and bunting which illuminated 
the scene with a brilliancy rarely seen. 

The streets were decorated elaborately and profusely. 
Emblems, flaes, streamers, and banners covered the buildino-s, 
public and private, stretching from curb to roof in a wonderful 
display. It was the most brilliant reception the Grand Army 
had ever received, and foretold the prominence the Order was 
soon to attain. 

The following day the Representatives of the Encampment 
were taken to the United States Armory and received with 
salute and military honors. 

1879 

The thirteenth annual session of the National Encampment 
met in Albany, N. Y., June 17, 1S79. 

Previous to the opening of the Encampment there was a 
large parade, comprising the National Guard of Albany, visiting 
bodies of militia, and Posts of the Department of New York. 

This was a larger Encampment than usual, nineteen Depart- 
ments being represented by 114 Department Ofiicers and 
Delegates. 

The address of Commander-in-Chief Robinson alluded to 
the continued charges of partisanship in the Grand Army, and 
repudiated all allegiance to any political party. His severe 
censure of the Copperheads of the war and the displacement of 

go 



Department of New York, G. A. H. 

Union soldiers in positions of trust by those who were Confed- 
erates in service was merited and just. The charity of the 
Order, not confined to our northern h)calities, as brielly out- 
lined in the address, illustrates the breadth of the purposes of 
the Organization. 

From the Address of the Commander-in-Chief 

As an organization we owe allegiance to no political party, and our Constitution 
expressly forbids the discussion of partisan questions in our meetings ; yet we are 
bound to protect the interests of our Comrades, and I cannot avoid expressing my 
indignation that Union soldiers (perhaps maimed and crippled in their country's 
service) should be removed from positions of trust and deprived of their means of 
support to make room for men who fought for the dissolution of the Union. It is 
no violation of our organic law to call your attention to this matter, for it is one that 
affects every loyal soldier in the land. If this Encampment cannot repair the 
wrong, it can at least place on record its protest against the act. 

Soidiers must stand by and support each other, or their rights will be ignored 
and trampled upon. We are not ready yet to admit that the cause of the Union is 
the lost cause. We do not admit that there is any doubt as to which was right and 
which was wrong in the great conflict through which we have passed. We had no 
doubt while the conflict lasted ; we have none now. While we are confident that 
we were right and our opponents were wrong, we are walling to believe they were 
honest and sincere. We can honor and respect the brave men w^ho manfully fought 
us face to face, but have only scorn and contempt for their Northern allies, who, 
when we needed sympathy and support, kept up the fire in the rear, criticised our 
operations, magnified our reverses, and had no words of encouragement or cheer 
for our success. Those we contended against were our own countryme'.. They 
were as earnest and enthusiastic as ourselves, but we felt that their success would be 
ecpially ruinous to the North and South. I'herefore we never acknowledged defeat, 
but after each reverse were ready to resume the offensive, determined then, as now, 
that in this country there shall be but one government and one flag. The Grand 
Army of the Republic, composed exclusively of men who devoted themselves to the 
accomplishment of this object, will insist upon a faithful observance of the terms 
agreed upon at the close of the war. 

At our last Encampment I called your attention to the l)ill then pending in 
Congress for the payment of arrears of pensions. It has since become a law, and 
although the disbursements under it are likely to be much greater than was antici- 
pated, but few persons deny the justice of the measure, and it is gratifying to know 
that it will afford the needed relief to many disabled Comrades and to thousands of 
widows and orphans. 

During the prevalence last summer of the terrible epidemic with which our 
brethren at the South were afthcted, I received an appeal for aid from our Comrades 

91 



Latiiyette Post, No. 140, 

in Louisiana, I immediately issued a circular calling for contributions to meet the 
emergency. The response was prompt and generous. Mower Post, No. i, Depart- 
ment of Louisiana, acknowledged the receipt of 154,423.85. They expended 
$4,289.05, leaving a balance of $134.80. The Committee state that they did not 
confine themselves to relieving members of the Grand Army and their families, but 
regarding the money as a soldiers' fund, contributed by soldiers, they furnished aid 
to all ex-soldiers and sailors of the Union whom they found in need. Their report 
embraces 878 families relieved, 19 ex-soldiers and 2 ex-sailors of the Union Army 
and Navy, together with 28 children buried. 

The report of Adjutant-General James L. Farley showed a 
net gain in membership during the past year of 4,048, more than 
half of which (2,732) had been made in Pennsylvania. 

The reported net assets by Quartermaster-General William 
Ward was $5,872.95. 

The Chaplain-in-Chief, Joseph F. Lovering, made another 
of his unique reports, calling it a sermon, having, as he said, 
previously given the Creed and Litany : 

Under instructions from the Chairman of the Committee on Manual for Officers, 
I have drafted a service for Memorial Day, which is herewith submitted. I have 
also drafted and herewith submit an outline draft for service at the dedication of 
memorial shafts, statues, etc. I have also drafted and herewith submit blanks for 
future reports to this ofifice should they be accepted and approved. 

So far as I can ascertain, the zeal of our Comrades for the Grand Army of the 
Republic knows no diminution, and, if possible, burns with more steadfast and 
glowing fiame. Their appreciation of the value and importance of the work of the 
Grand Army is heartier than ever. Why should it not be? Such work concerns 
the sacred memory of our dead, that the precious inheritance of valor, sacrifice, 
good faith, and loyalty they left may be guarded by us and enshrined in the life of 
our country. Such work concerns ourselves in justification of that personal self- 
respect that belongs to us as Union soldiers, who should be joint recipients with our 
dead of the Nation's gratitude and honors. Such work concerns our children, that they 
may learn that great lesson of patriotism, that the security of the State must depend 
upon the fidelity of the citizen. Such work concerns our country, that treason, with 
its baneful smile and deceitful tongue, may not steal, by political audacity, what it 
could not conquer by the mailed arm of rebellion ; that the Nation may not suffer 
the shame of surrendering in peace what it paid blood and treasure for in war ; 
that the craft and intrigue of the caucus, or the plausible sophistries of the hustings 
or of Congress, may not give rule to those who could not gain authority by bayonet 
and sword ; that no such humiliating spectacle may be endured as that of a maimed 
and patriot soldier driven out of the camp he has guarded, without even the 
formality of a drumhead court-martial, and his place filled by one who wears a 

92 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

livery of gray under the domino and cloak, or waterproof and shawl, of a defeated 
yet defiant and xecon-tiiiited rebel. 

In my previous reports, that our zeal might be increased and our fidelity 
enlarged, I have given "our Creed " and " our J>itany " ; to-day 1 purjjose to preach 
"our sermon" and read "our hymn." 

This is the sermon : 

You can find the words of my text in the Twentieth Psalm, fifth verse : " In the 
name of our God we will set up our banners." 

Such a text may fitly suggest this subject : " Our Flag." 

1. Our flag was woven on the loom of the Revolution by the indomitable valor, 
the unwavering determination, and invincible faith of hearts that knew no fear and 
would endure no wrong. 

2. Our flag was consecrated to liberty and equal rights, to the security of the 
citizen and the sovereignty of the people. 

3. Under its sheltering folds and in defence of the principles for which it 
stands, our heroic and immortal dead rallied and fought and fell and were pro- 
moted. 

4. For its honor and supremacy we have toiled and suffered and prayed. 

5. Beneath its radiant folds no miscreant fraud, no treachery with assassin 
heart, no sullen and vindictive treason ought to live. 

6. Its shelter should protect only industry, good faith, self-sacrificing patriotism, 
that an honorable past may not fail of its just deserts ; that the present may be 
strengthened in devotion to acknowledged duty ; that the future may realize what a 
loyal faith may encourage us to expect. 

In conclusion, all hail our flag ! See how its stars glow with celestial light ! 
See how its crimson throbs as if it still felt the pulse of the brave hearts that have 
defended it ! See how its white symbolizes an unstained loyalty ! See how its blue 
still mirrors the heavens, in whose purity its stars first learned how to shine ! 

See how the eagle on its staff, with half-spread pinions and vigilant eyes, 
watches against any rattlesnake that may lurk in the grass, or any buzzard that may 
anywhere have fattened on carrion. 

Finally, let us, so far as our flag is concerned, adopt the language of our text 
and say : " In the name of our God we will set up our banners." Let our flag be 
dear to us. Let it be set high above us. Let nothing be dearer, let nothing be 
higher, save only the austere and gracious symbol of our faith — the cross of Jesus 
Christ our Lord ! Amen. 



Rules, Regulations, and Ritual 

The Committee reported upon the several propositions sub- 
mitted, the most important being an amendment to Article XIV., 
Chapter L, Eligibility to Membership, adding the words in 
italics : 

93 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

Soldiers and sailors of the United States Army, Navy, or Marine Corps, and of 
such State irgimetits as were called into active set-vice and subject to the orders of 
United States General Officers, who served between April 12, 1861, and April (), 
1865, in the war for the suppression of the Rebellion, and those having been honor- 
ably discharged therefrom after such service, shall be eligible to membership in the 
Grand Army of the Republic. 

No person shall be eligible to membership who has at any time borne arms 
against the United States. 

The limit as to time was intended to cover a decision follow- 
ing the rulings of the Supreme Court of the United States as to 
the date when the Rebellion ended, and under which decision 
those who enlisted after Lee's surrender were eligible to mem- 
bership in the Grand Army of the Republic. 

Another important feature of this Encampment was the 
adoption of a form of service for Memorial Day, which had 
been prepared by the Chaplain-in-Chief. 

For the Observance of Memorial Day 

Thy dead men shall live. — /sa. xxvi. 19. 

It is sweet and honorable to die for one's country. — Horace. 

Services for /lOemorial H)a^ 

[The Post will assemble at the order of the Post Commander, in the Post hall 

(or elsewhere), all Comrades in uniform. The officers (if in the Post hall) will take 

their usual stations.] 

Commander. — Sergeant-Major {he rises and salutes, the Commander returning 
salute^, you will prepare for parade. {The Sergeant- Ma/or -will then form the 
Post in line, tivo ranks.) 

Sergeant-Major. — Commander, the Post is formed. 

Commander. — Officer of the Day, you will ascertain if all in the ranks are Comrades 
of the Grand Army of the Republic. 

Officer of the Day. — All in the ranks are Comrades of the Grand Army of the 
Republic. 

Commander. — Adjutant, you will present the officers. {The Adjutant will com- 
mand, '■'■Officers to the front and centre.'" Will place Imnself tlwee paces in 
front and opposite ce litre of the line. The remaining officers zvill form o?t the 
right and left of the Adjutant, facing the Post Commander, as folhnvs : Senior 
Vice- Commander, Surgeon, Chaplain, Adjutant, Officer of the Day, Quarter- 
master, Officer of the Guard, Junior Vice-Co?nmander.) 

Adjutant. — Officers, Present arms ! 

94 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

Commander {ini/css he has special orders for offi,cers will say) : Officers, to your 
stations. ( Officers ivill take their places in line, Chaplain one pace to left and 
front of Commander, Adjutant one pace to rii;Jit and rear.) 

Commander. — The Chaplain will invoke the divine blessing. Parade, rest ! 

Chaplain. — Almighty Father ! humbly we bow before Thee, our Creator, Preserver, 
Guide, and Protector. We thank Thee for our lives ; for the mercy which has 
kept us until this hour ; for Thy guidance on land and sea by day and by night ; 
for Thy constant care in the hour of danger ; and for the preservation of our 
national integrity and unity. Be graciously near to our Comrades who suffer 
from disease or wounds, and to the widows and orphans of those who fell in 
our holy cause ; in all distress comfort them, and give us willing hearts and 
ready hands to supply their needs. Grant that the memory of our noble dead, 
who freely gave their lives for the land they loved, may dwell ever in our hearts. 
Bless our country ; bless our Order ; make it an instrument of great good ; keep 
our names on the roll of Thy servants, and at last receive us into that Grand 
Army above, where Thou, O God, art the Supreme Commander. 

Comrades. — Amen. 

Commander. — x\ttention ! Adjutant, you will read the orders for the day. 

[The Adjutant will then read the order of the Post Commander, and the National 
and Department orders for Memorial Day (unless these are to be read in the 
general services in the cemetery) ; also, order of exercises, details for decora- 
tion of graves, etc.] 

Commander. — Comrades, the duty of to-day is of impressive significance. We meet 
to honor our dead, and to deepen our reverence for their worth ; to strengthen 
among ourselves the bond of fraternity by recalling the memory of experiences 
common to us all ; to encourage a more generous charity for our Comrades who 
are sick or in distress, and for the destitute wards of the Grand Army; to 
renew our pledge of loyalty to our country and our flag, and to emphasize in 
the minds and hearts of all who may unite with us the privilege and duty of 
patriotism. 

It is expected that throughout our services each one will manifest the most 
courteous and reverent decorum. Let our soldierly deportment be such that 
we may worthily honor the graves we decorate, the memories we cherish, the 
flag we salute, and the Grand Army to which we belong. 
[Should it have been necessary for Comrades who had been detailed at a regular 

Post meeting for any special service to perform such duty previous to this parade, 

the Commander will call for their report. 

Should it be necessary for such details to attend to the duty assigned them 

after parade, the Commander will announce the time and place of reassembling, 

and then order, " Parade, dismissed ! " 

If the Post is to decorate the graves in a body, the Commander, after the above 

address, will order the Post to move in column by fours to the place where such 

decoration is to take place. The music on parade, to and from the graves, shall be 

that oifife and drum. If a band is desired, it shall be used only on street parade 

95 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

after decoration, on the way to the hall or grove where the memorial address is to 
be made, at that place, and on the return to the Post hall or place of assembly. 

When the Post in a body decorates graves, or when, after the decoration of 
graves by detachments, the Post assembles for service in the cemetery, or when a 
cenotaph is decorated to the unknown (or unreturned) on same parade ground, 
a firing party with three rounds of blank cartridge shall be detailed to do escort 
duty, who shall march with arms reversed, unloaded ; and at the cemetery or 
cenotaph, or at some other convenient place, after the decoration of graves and 
cenotaph has been completed, the Commander shall order the officer in charge of 
the firing party, " Salute the dead ! " And that officer shall order, " Recover, arms 1 " 
Order, arms ! " etc., to " Fire ! " 

The Commander shall then dismiss the parade, or take up the line of march to 
Post hall, and then dismiss to such time as further exercises shall be had, unless 
such exercises proceed immediately.] 

[These exercises are supposed to be now public in their character.] 



Special Service at Cemetert! 

[Should there be this special service, the address of the Commander, beginning, 
" Comrades, the duty of to-day is of impressive significance," will not be given until 
the Post, band or choir, and attendant friends have taken their positions around 
some monument or grave. Then this service shall be used :] 
Commander. — Comrades, the duty of to-day, etc. 
Music. — By band or choir. 

Chaplain. — Let us pray. Almighty God ! in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
who brought life and immortality to light, we bow before Thee on this Memo- 
rial Day. We thank Thee that out from the carnage of war we have come to 
these days of peace. We thank Thee that the valor and devotion, and sacri- 
fice unto death of those whose memories we revere, vindicate our expectations 
that no threat against our country's honor shall ever be accomplished ; but as 
in the past Thou didst give to our dead the spirit of fidelity and of heroism, so 
Thou wilt give to those steadfast in the cause of human rights and liberty, of 
law and order, of social justice and national rectitude. Thy wisdom to direct. 
Thy might to strengthen. Thy love to bless. 

O God ! teach us to honor our dead by serving the country for which they 
died. O God ! teach us to be grateful to our dead for what they wrought for 
us by our ready helpfulness of those, the widow and orphan, whose right it 
is to mourn. O God ! teach us to decorate the graves of our dead, not only 
with a tribute beautiful and fragrant, that must fade, but with that fraternity 
whose love shall endure, with that charity that is fruitful of good works, with 
that loyalty which, while true to our country's flag, is supremely devoted to the 
cross, the symbol of our faith. 

We thank Thee for peace : that the anger of cannon no longer burdens the 
air, that the gleam of the sabre and bayonet no longer blinds the eyes, that the 

q6 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

passion of war is stilled, and that mercy ministers to those who have submitted 
to the authority of the Nation. May we give them a soldier's pardon, not 
forgetting the wrong that was done in the charity we accord. 

Continue, we pray Thee, the memory of the dead ; strengthen, we j^ray 
Thee, the hearts of the living; bless, we pray Thee, our whole people, that it 
may be a nation whose Clod is the Lord ; deepen and ennoble that faith that shall 
make the Grand Army of the Republic the color-guard of the Nation's i)atriotism ; 
and let our countrv, now and forever, be the '" land of the free and the home of 
the brave." And to the end that all for which we jjray may be wrought out in 
us effectually, grant, O God 1 that l)y Thy grace we may be enlisted in Thy 
great army of the redeemed, under Jesus Christ, the Captain of our Salvation. 
Amen ! 

Commander. — To-day is the festival of our dead. We unite to honor the memory 
of our brave and our beloved, to enrich and ennoble our lives by recalling a 
public heroism and a private worth that are immortal, to encourage by our 
solemn service a more zealous and stalwart patriotism. Festival of the dead ! 
Yes, though many eyes are clouded with tears, though many hearts are heavy 
with regret, though many lives are still desolate because of the father or brother, 
the husband or lover, who did not come back ; though every grave, which a 
tender reverence or love adorns with flowers, is the shrine of a sorrow whose 
influence is still potent, though its first keen poignancy has been dulled — 
despite of all, to-day is a festival, a festival of our dead ; no less a festival be- 
cause it is full of solemnity. 

And now, as in this silent camping-ground of our dead, with soldierly tender- 
ness and love, we garland these passionless mounds, let us recall those who 
made their breasts a barricade between our country and its foes. Let us recall 
their toils, their sufferings, their heroism, their supreme fidelity in camp, in 
prison-pen, on the battle-field and in hospital, that the flag under which they 
fought and from the shadows of whose folds they were promoted may never be 
dishonored ; that the country for whose union and supremacy they surrendered 
life may have the fervent and enthusiastic devotion of every citizen ; that, as 
we stand by every grave as before an altar, we may pledge our manhood that, 
so help us God, the memory of our dead shall encourage and strengthen in us 
all a more loyal patriotism. 

Officer of the Day {o7- Comrade to wJioiii tlic duty lias been assigufd). — In your 
name, my Comrade, I scatter [or deposit] these memorial flowers upon this 
grave [or monument], which represents the graves of all who died in the 
sacred cause of our country. Our floral tribute shall wither. Let the tender, 
fraternal love for which it stands endure until the touch of death shall chill the 
warm pulse-beat of our hearts. 

Chaplain {^or Comrade to whom the duty has been assigned). — Comrades, by this 
service, without distinction of race or creed, we renew our pledge to exercise a 
spirit of fraternity among ourselves, of charity to the destitute wards of the 
Grand Army, and of loyalty to the authority and union of the United States of 

97 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

America, and to our glorious flag, under whose folds every Union soldier's or 

sailor's grave is the altar of patriotism. 
Comrades. — Amen. 

Commander {/o the officer in charge of the firing party). — Salute the dead ' 
Officer. — Recover, arms ! Order, arms, etc. Fire ! 
Hymn. — " My Country, 'tis of thee." 
Bfnediction. 

public Exercises 

[This service is meant especially for public halls, although the special service at 
cemetery could be used, excepting what is said by the Officer of the Day and Chap- 
lain in the act of decoration. The Scripture reading in this service could be intro- 
duced into the special senice at cemetery if no"further public exercises are to be had. 
The audience is supposed to be seated. The Post enters in uniform, and, 
covered, file into the space before the seats they are to occupy. The Commander, 
standing just before the Post, or upon the platform where invited guests, orators, 
and Chaplain are seated, says :] 

Commander. — Attention ! Post, , Department , Grand Army 

of the Republic. The Adjutant will read memorial orders from Headquarters. 
{Adjutant then reads such parts of orders from Department Headquarters 
and National Headquarters as may hiave been prej'ioudv designated i'v the 
Coniniani/er.) 
Commander. — Obedience is a soldier's duty. It is not, however, merely in obedience 
to the order (or orders) read that we assemble here. The most generous 
instincts of our hearts prompts us to do what the orders from Headquarters 
command. This day commemorates a valor on sea and on land that is illus- 
trious. This day is eloquent with a patriotism which did not speak only from 
the lips. This day is sacred with the almost visible presence of those who, out 
of prison-pens and hospitals, from camps and battle-fields, have joined the 
innumerable company of those who muster to-day upon the parade-ground of 
heaven. Comrades, salute the dead ! 

[At this command, every Comrade and the Commander will place his left hand 
upon his heart and raise his hat with his right hand. Standing so for a moment in 
silence, the Commander, letting his left hand drop to his side, and replacing his hat 
on his head, will say :] 

Commander. — Attention! {A />rief pause.) Uncover. {A brief pause. One rap.) 
Commander {removing his hat after the Post is seated, luill sax) : 

Friends : As Commander of this Post, I welcome }-ou, in the name of my 
Comrades, to this public service. To us, this is the Memorial Day of stalwart 
bravery, of patriotic heroism, of national faith. It is the freedom day of a 
race emancipated from bondage, and of a nation redeemed from iniquity. It 
is dear to every soldier. It deepens in our hearts a memory of our brave and our 
beloved — the Grand Army of Immortals ; and that memory makes precious to us 
the badge of the Grand Army of the Republic, which we wear upon our breasts. 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

May we join so reverently in these exercises, that what we call Memorial 

Day may be to our dead their day of coronation. 
]\Iusic. — By band or choir [such as " Keller's American Hymn "]. 
Commander. — The significance of this day is not without the indorsements of Holy 

Scripture. Hear what may well a])|)ly to our 

Graxd Armv i)f the Repl'blic, and the Flag. 

The Lord gave the word : great was the company of those that published it. — 
Ps. Ixviii. II. 

Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard. — [er. 1. 2. 
In the name of our God we will set up our banners. — Ps. xx. 5. 
I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O mv soul, the sound of 
the trumpet, the alarm of war. — Jer. iv. 19. 
Commander. — Senior Vice-Commander, what words of Holy Scripture may refer 
to the 

Navv? 

Senior Vice-Commander. — They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business 
in great waters ; these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. 
For He commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves 
thereof. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and He bringeth them 
out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof 
are still. Then are they glad, because they be quiet : so He bringeth them 
unto their desired haven. Oh that men woulil praise the Lord for His goodness, 
and for His wonderful works to the children of men ! — Ps. cvii. 23-25, 2S-32. 

Commander. — Junior Vice-Commander, what Scripture mav applv to the 

x'Xrmv ? 

Junior Vice-Commander. — To your tents, O Israel ! So all Israel went to their tents. 
— 2 Chron. x. 16. The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, every man by 
his own camp, and every man by his own standard, throughout their hosts. — 
Num. i. 52. Thou hast given a banner to them that fear Thee, that it may be dis- 
played because of the truth. — Ps. Ix. 4. The Lord shall utter His voice before 
His army ; for His camp is very great : for He is strong that executeth his word : 
for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible ; and who can abide it? — 
Joel, ii. II. Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your ene- 
mies : let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye ter- 
rified because of them ; for the Lord your (rod is He that goeth with you, to 
fight for you against your enemies, to save you. — Deut. xx. 3, 4. Some trust in 
chariots, and some in horses : but we will remember the name of the Lord our 
God. — Ps. XX. 7. 

Commander. — Officer of the Day, if the work of the Navy and Army is well done, 
what proclamation from Holy Writ can you make ? 



ttrc 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

Officer of the Day. — A proclamation of 

Peace 

Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us . for thou also hath wrought all our 
works in us. — Isa. xxvi. 12 

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good 
tidings, that publisheth peace ; that bringeth good tidings of good, that pub- 
lisheth salvation ; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth ! The Lord hath 
made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations ; and all the ends of the 
earth shall see the salvation of our God. — Isa. lii. 7, 10. 
Commander. — Even with such a peace, something remains for us to consider. 
Chaplain, tell us of 

The Nation and its Dead 

Chaplain. — Thou hast increased the nation, O Lord, thou hast increased the 
nation : thou art glorified : thou hast removed it far unto all the ends of the 
earth. Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. 
Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust : for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, 
and the earth shall cast out the dead. — Isa. xxvi. 15, 19. 

He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord (jod will wij^e away 
tears from off all faces ; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from 
off all the earth : for the Lord hath spoken it. — Isa. xxv. 8. 

In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah ; We have a 
strong city, salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks. — Isa. xxvi. i. 

Commander. — And, as an end to all, what is to be our 

\^ICTOR\' ? 

Chaplain. — This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. — i John 
V. 4. Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His 
might. Put on the whole armor of (iod, that ye may be able to stand against 
the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against 
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, 
against si)iritua] wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the 
whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and 
having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with 
truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness ; and your feet shod with 
the preparation of the gospel of peace ; above all, taking the shield of faith, 
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And 
take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of 
God. — Eph. vi. lo-iS. 

War a good warfare ; holding faith, and a good conscience. — i Tim. i. 
18, 19. 

Our Saviour Jesus Christ hath abolished death, and hath brought life and 
immortality to light through the gospel. — 2 Tim. i. 10. Thou therefore en- 
dure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. — 2 Tim. ii. 3. 






EIGHTH COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF DIED JULY I/, 18S5 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

For this mortal must put on immortality. So when this mortal shall have 
])ut on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, 
Death is swallowed up in victory. () death, where is thy sting ? () grave, 
where is thy victory ? The sting of death is sin ; and the strength of sin is the 
law. But thanks be to dod, which giveth us the victory through our Lord 
Jesus Christ. — i Cor. xv. 53-5S. 

Commander. — Attention ! Post, . After such words from Holy 

Scripture, it is fitting now that we invoke the Divine blessing. Paradk. Raf ! 

Chai'I.aix. — Almightv Cod, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who brought life 
and immortality to light, etc. 

Comrades. — Amen. 

Co.MMANDER. — Attention 1 ( One rap.) 

Music. — By band or choir. 

Address. — By . 

Music. — By band or choir, closing with the national ode, " America." 

Commander. — Chaplain, pronounce the Benediction. 

Chaplain. — The grace of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the love of Ciod, and 
the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with us all. Amen. 

C<3mrades. — Amen. 

[The Post may now be dismissed. It is better, however, after requesting 

the audience to remain seated, for the Post to take up line of march to Post hall, 

or some other convenient jjlace, and then be dismissed.] 

One of the results of an election for officers for the ensuing- 
year, which took place at this Encampment, was the choice of 
Rev. William Earnshaw, of Ohio, for Commander-in-Chief. 
Among the many hospitalities extended at the time of this En- 
campment, the most noted was a grand banquet to the Grand 
Army of the Republic and the Society of the Army of the 
Potomac, on the evening of the 17th of June, at which Gen- 
eral James Husted made the remarkable tribute to the State 
National Guard : 

Trom her ranks were ofificered, by hundreds, the companies, the regiments, the 
brigades, divisions of the armies of the LTnion. Singly and by platoons her files 
went forth to do battle for the right, and " so long as memory holds her place in 
this distracted globe," so long will be held ever green the memories of Vosburgh, 
of Corcoran, and of Pratt. Thousands more there were who with them are seated 
around the Great White Throne ; thousands more there are, who are of us and with 
us on earth, of equal honor and equal fame. Such was the record of the National 
Guard during the trying days. Where stands she now? Al this moment, wdth rare 
exceptions, her officers are they who won their spurs side by side with you. The 
file, too, as well as the rank, numbers a large percentage of the veterans of the war. 

103 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

They are members of your great Organization. They are with you and of you here 
tO-night. What can I say more than to add — they are yourselves? 



During the present year the badge of the Order was again 
changed in the form of the Eagle 
and shape of the Star, bringing the 
two metal pieces into a more sym- 
metrical harmony. 

As this is the most memorable 
year in the history of the Depart- 
ment of New York, the event which 
made it so demands an extended 
notice, though it retards the ap- 
proach to the birthday of Lafayette 
Post. 



The New York State Sol- 
diers' and Sailors' Home 

The Home is located at Bath, 
Steuben County, where the corner- 
stone was laid, with appropriate 
ceremonies, June 13, 1877. 




List of Articles Deposited in the Box Placed under the Corner-stone. 

A copy of the Holy Scriptures, presented by the Steuben County Bible Society. 

Brief history of the Soldiers' Home. 

Set of United States coin of 1876 — dollar, half dollar, quarter dollar, twenty- 
cent piece, dime, five, three, and one cent pieces. 

Medals — Washington Centennial, 1 776-1876 ; Franklin and Washington, Jef- 
ferson and Adams, McClellan, Lincoln, Grant, Greeley, Hayes and Wheeler, Tilden 
antl Hendricks, eight pieces of Continental currency ; all donated by Thomas Warner 
of Cohocton. 

United States paper money — Dollar greenback, one half dollar, one quarter 
dollar, and ten cents fractional currency. 

Concurrent Resolutions in Relation to a Soldiers' Home for the State of New 
York, adopted by the Legislature, May 8th. 

The Act of Incorporation. 

104 



A. 



1 

i 



Department of New York, G. A. R. 

Names of Board of Trustees for 1S76 and i-Syy, together with Standing Com- 
mittees. 

By-laws as prepared by the Board of Trustees. 

Proceedings of the National Encampment, Grand Army of the Republic, since 
the foundation of the Order in 1866 to 1876, inclusive, with oi)inions of Judge 
Advocate General, and Rules of Order. 

Proceedings of the Semi-annual and Annual Encampments of the Grand Army 
of the Republic, Department of New York, for 1875-1877. 

General Orders and Circulars issued from National Headquarters of the (irand 
Army of the Republic, and from Headquarters, Department of New York, from 
1876 to date. 

Officers of the State of New York, 1877. 

Judges of the Cpurt of Appeals. 

Officers of Steuben County, 1877. 

Officers in the village of Bath, 1877. 

Churches in the village of Bath, 1S77, together with names of officiating 
pastors. 

Officers of the Davenport Institute for Female Orphan Children, 1877. 

Officers of the Haverling Union School, 1877. 

Copies of the followingdaily and weekly papers : New York "Tribune," "Herald," 
" Times," " Sun," " World," "Post," " Staats-Zeitung," and " Graphic " ; Brooklyn 
daily and Sunday " Eagle," " Union," and "Argus"; Brooklyn (E. D.) "Times" 
and " Review " ; Bath " Advocate," " Courier," and " Echo " ; Elmira " Advertiser," 
"Gazette," and "Husbandman"; Rochester "Democrat," "Union," and "Ex- 
press" ; Buffalo " Courier," "Advertiser," and " Express." 

Pamphlet, prepared by General Daniel E. Sickles, on the " New York Soldiers' 
Home," setting forth its necessity, its proposed inmates, and the progress of the work. 

Subscription Book as used by the New York Finance Committee in aid of 
Soldiers' Home. 

Programme of Exercises at the Ceremonies of Laying Corner-stone. 

Photograph of the Home. 

List of contributions by Seward Post, No. 37, of Auburn, 

Copy of circular sent to churches for collections, May 27th. 

Grand Army Gazette. 

Red and white silk badges, worn by Delegates to the semi-annual Encampment 
at Bath. 

Grand Army Badge, No. 1534. 

Silk flag from Thatford Post, No. 3, Brooklyn. 

The Home was formally dedicated January 23, 1879. 

What seemed at that time a wonderful accomplishment has 
grown until at the present time it seems as though nothing more 
could be done to complete or perfect it. There are three-story 

107 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

brick barracks sufficiently large to accommodate 1,200 inmates, 
and a hospital with capacity for 200 patients and attendants. 
There is a headquarters building, a chapel, an amusement hall, a 
greenhouse, boiler and engine house, bakery, laundry, and bath- 
house, and several workshops and storehouses ; also a store, 
fountain, band-stand, reading-room, and library of 8,000 volumes. 
The buildings are heated by steam and lighted by electricity 
from its own plant, furnishing 900 incandescent lights of sixteen 
candle-power for the interior, and twelve arc lights of 2,000 candle- 
power each for exterior purposes. On Christmas Day before 
the dedication twenty-five veterans were admitted, since which 
time there have been 6,000 admissions and more than 1,000 
deaths. The inmates present number over 1,000, at an average 
age of sixty-five years. Of the 6,000 who have entered, 128 are 
veterans of the Regular Army; 5,522 Volunteers, and 350 Navy. 
Foreign born, 3,200; native born, 2,800. Married, 1,752 ; single, 
4,248. Those who could not read and write number 1,977. 

The pensions of the veterans are received by the cashier of 
the Home, and credited to each pensioner; of this $1.50 can be 
drawn weekly for spending money. This plan forces the men 
to save, so they can lay up a supply to be sent to their families, 
or used for expenses when they take their usual ninety days' 
furlough. The profits of the " canteen " go into the Grand 
Army fund, which has reached the sum of several thousand dol- 
lars. It was considered wise to permit the canteen, yet a Keeley 
League has been formed which has a membership of 177, with 
only seven backsliders. The place is quite a village of itself, 
with its tailor, paint, shoe, barber, machine, tin, blacksmith, 
and carpenter shops, and stores of sundry kinds, all operated 
by the veterans themselves. 

Services are held in the Chapel every Sunday, and when an 
inmate dies. Of these 877 sleep in the Home cemetery, and 
233 were taken away by friends. 

A volume could be written about the Home, yet its history 
would be incomplete. The addresses at the dedication, by 
the retiring Department Commander, W. F. Rogers, and Mr. 
Setchworth, President of the State Board of Charities, will not 

108 



Department of New York, G. A. H. 

be found tiresome by the Comrades of the Order who appre- 
ciate its charitable and philanthropic work. 
General \V. F. Rogers said : 

I offer no apology for occupying the position in which you find me to-day, nor 
express any regret that the task imposed upon me was not entrusted to abler hands. 

I find myself simply the creature of circumstances. One year ago I was honored 
by my Comrades by being chosen the Commander of the Department of New York, 
Grand Army of the Republic ; and holding this position at the time when these 
buildings were completed and ready for occupation, those having charge of the work, 
together with a Committee of Comrades associated with them to make arrangements 
for their dedication to the purposes for which they were erected, detailed me for this 
duty simply because it was my fortune to be at the head of the Department. As 
obedience is the duty of the soldier, although I felt that they might have done much 
better for you, as well as myself, I assumed the task imposed upon me. 

We have assembled here to-day to dedicate to valor and patriotism an institution 
partially erected by private benevolence, but now endowed by this State, to be a 
Home for the support of the helpless and indigent Comrades who participated in 
the struggle for national existence, and aided in again making the flag we followed 
the symbol of a reunited country, but who are debarred the benefits of the Homes 
under the patronage of the National Government. 

It was meet that this Home should have opened its doors at this season of the 
year, when the human heart is open, more than at any other time, to charitable 
deeds. The last anniversary of the advent of the Saviour of Mankind found thirty- 
one inmates in this Home, who ate their Christmas dinner within these walls [ap- 
plai(se\ ; and each returning anniversary of an event which is celebrated throughout 
Christendom — the birth of the meek and lowly Son of God, who took upon Him 
man's nature and man's sufferings, and became a " man of sorrow and acquainted 
with grief," that the erring children of the race might through Him enter a more 
perfect Home beyond the realms of this world — they will continue to remind those 
who are gathered here, remnants of the host who went forth to battle for the right, 
that the lessons taught by Him who spake as never man spake, brought down to us 
through the centuries, are spreading their benign influences in the hearts of men 
and moving them to noble deeds of charity, to commiserate the misfortune of those 
who, by the mysterious decrees of Providence, are bereft of the glad gifts which 
enable us to see and hear and speak, as well as the subjects of that worst of all human 
afflictions, a mind diseased. 

The distinguished citizen who is to follow me, and who has made these subjects 
his special study — devoting to them a large-hearted benevolence which will entitle 
his name, in after years, to rank among the benefactors of his kind — will tell you 
what New York has done and is doing for this class of unfortunate humanity. And 
he comes here to-day to participate with us in celebrating the establishment of a 
kindred project, the outgrowth of a sentiment as pure as any which adorns human 
nature — the sentiment which recognizes the trials, dangers, and sufferings of those 



Lafayette Post, No. 140, 

who left behind them their dearest ties to breast the storm of war and form a wall of 
fire between your homes and an earnest, determined foe, whose rebellious arms 
were raised to destroy the inheritance bequeathed to us by the fathers of the Re- 
public. Happily for us the resources and patriotism of the North were equal to the 
task of reestablishing the national authority. The Union was saved, but at what 
fearful cost ! Happily for us, also, when the immense host which had responded to 
the call of their country, and accomplished it work, and returned to quietly melt 
away, and again assume the duties and responsibilities of citizenship, there was a 
demand for the services of all in the peaceful avocations of life, and years of pros- 
perity have helped to heal the wounds of war. Then followed a time of general de- 
pression ; and as the years passed it seemed that many who followed the flag became 
the peculiar victims of this changed condition of things. The homage to the 
returning heroes at the close of the war was forgotten. The platforms of political 
conventions, which, durmg the strife, abounded with promises that those who fought 
for the country should, other things being equal, be entitled to places within the gift 
of the State or people, no longer alluded to the services of the great volunteer army. 
Loyalty to party is recognized as paramount to loyalty to country, and the humble 
petition of the poor soldier for the privilege of earning his bread by the labor of his 
hands is too often ignored. But those who shared with him the baptism of fire are 
always ready to sympathize with and aid him. 

Few outside of the Grand Army of the Republic are aware of the benefit which 
the soldier and his family have received from the funds contributed by its members. 
It has been charged that our Organization is a political one ; that we are banded to- 
gether for the purpose of controlling political action ; and this charge has tended to 
prejudice the minds even of soldiers against us, who have consequently kept aloof 
from our councils. The occasion which has called us together to-day should be 
sufficient refutation of this charge ; but, in order to further satisfy the uninitiated, I 
will quote its objects : 

First. To preserve and strengthen those kind and fraternal feelings which 
bind together the soldiers, sailors, and marines who united to suppress the late 
rebellion, and to perpetuate the memory and history of the dead. 

Second. To assist such former Comrades-in-arms as need help and protection, 
and to extend needful aid to the widows and orphans of those who have fallen. 

Third. To maintain true allegiance to the United States of America, based 
upon a paramount respect for and fidelity to the National Constitution and Laws ; to 
discountenance whatever tends to weaken loyalty, incites to insurrection, treason, or 
rebellion, or in any manner impairs the efficiency and permanency of our free insti- 
tutions ; and to encourage the spread of universal liberty, equal rights, and justice to 
all men. 

This is our platform, and to these principles are we solemnly bound. It is an 
association which has enabled us to know the wants of our Comrades ; and the 
needy one knows that where there is a Post of the Grand Army he will be sure of a 
fraternal welcome and such assistance as their ability will permit. It is an associa- 
tion which brought to our knowledge the unpleasant fact that worthy Comrades, 



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LAFAYETTE POST 



No. 140 

DEPARTMENT OF NEW YORK .... 
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC 

MEETS AT 

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1st and 3d Fridays of each month 
except June, July and August, in 
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